What the hell happened here!
by Kokoro893
Summary: Harry and Ron return after having traveled the world for the past 5 years only to realize their friends have moved on without them.
1. What the hell happened here

**What the hell happened here?!**

The better part of 5 years had passed since the battle of Hogwarts. Years of fighting evil wizards had taken their toll on the young men. That's why they decided to travel a bit before starting their Auror-training. One thing led to the other and instead of spending a couple of weeks in South America, they spent entire years traveling the world.

Now they have returned and were looking forward to seeing their family and friends again. It was a Sunday afternoon and the two best friends walked towards the Burrow with anticipation. From afar they saw people pick-nicking in the garden. Harry unpacked his binoculars from his rucksack and looked at the party.

Ron had a look at them as well. He could make Luna Lovegood, Ginny, and surprisingly Pansy Parkinson out, he also recognized George playing with several small children. Two of the children had blond hair, blue eyes, and fair skin, he bet they were Luna's. The red-haired one with the freckles must belong to Ginny and the remaining two toddlers, a boy with dark skin, clearly fathered by Blaise and a girl with black hair must be Pansy's, who was holding a small baby in her arms.

They moved closer not knowing what to think of the image before them. Secretly Ron was pleased that his Hermione was not part of this gathering. George was the first to recognize the two war-heroes. He ran to them and hugged them each, which draw the witches' attention to the new-comers.

Luna and George were smiling broadly and seemed genuinely happy to see them again while Pansy's lips were twitching. She was fighting the impulse to say something inappropriate in front of her children. But Ginny was a fierce witch and her patience was running low.

She stomped her foot onto the ground. "What do you think you're doing here?! How could you have not once sent a letter?! A couple of weeks?! It has been 5 fucking long years!"

"Sorry, we were kind busy and…" Ron tried to explain.

"And what?! You forgot to tell your family and girlfriend?!" She glared at Harry.

"Is that your kid, Ginny?" Harry asked pointing to the little redhead.

"No, it is not. Little Fred here is Pansy's and George's little war-is-over-celebration accident. Those are mine." Ginny gestured to the black kid and the little blond boy.

"I thought that was Luna's."

"No, the black-haired is hers and Neville's," Ginny said pointing at the child.

"I hate being pregnant. I spent most of the time in the bathroom. Never doing that again."

A clearly pregnant Hermione just appeared in the doorway. Ron had shock written all over his face. The witch looked at their guests in a way that could make a basilisk jealous. The young witch was upset and furious. Her bushy hair was even more wild than usual. She bowed and picked up one of the children, a blond girl, which was far from simple in her condition.

"Come on, Rose we have to go home. Girls, we'll see each other next week at my place. Have fun," Hermione said, ignoring her friends.

"Are you sure that is your child?"

"No Ronald. I have a habit of taking home some other people's children and no one including my husband seems to bother, the perks of being a war hero."

"You wouldn't mind taking your grandson with you."

"Of course not, Ginny."

"Grandson?!"

Ginny sighed. "My children spend Mondays, Wednesdays and with their fathers-"

"Fathers?!"

"-and Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays with me. We usually spent the Saturdays together at the Quidditch-field and on Sundays, it is just us witches, we rotate hosting those play-dates. Yes, fathers. Funny story… I spent a great night joining Blaise and Draco in bed and my twins are the result of that. Lucius was rather pissed. But at least I am pureblood. That still counts for something. He knows his son lacks interest in witches, Blaise is a lot more flexible in this matter, anyway, the big bad Death Eater is just happy to have a grandson and heir at all. Also, it is just so entertaining to watch dad and him try to be civil because they now have a common grandson," she explained.

"And Hermione?"

"What did you expect Ron?! That she waits forever when you ignore her letters? And when she and Draco returned to Hogwarts…"

"Hermione and the ferret?!" His eyes were popping out. Ron couldn't believe what he was hearing.

Ginny was annoyed. "Have you been just listening at all?! Of course not! But just because you are just as unable to see her worth as a woman as Draco, doesn't mean nobody else will and when she and Draco worked on a project they started to spent a lot of time in the great library of Malfoy Manor and the Lord of the Manor did take notice of her…"

"She fucks Lucius Malfoy?! Urgh."

"They are married Ron, it was all over the news, worldwide, for Merlin's sake!"


	2. Hermione and Lucius in need of Ice Cream

**Hermione and Lucius in need of Ice Cream**

Hermione stepped through the fireplace. With her last ounce of self-control, she put Rose and Scorpio down and told the cute little girl to look after her nephew. The small children ran off and the young witch let out a groan of desperation. Sparks were flying and the air was ionized.

"OUCH!" Lucius Malfoy received an electric shock upon entering the foyer. "My love, I swear I've instructed Miss Weasley on exactly which biscuits to provide. I was under the impression she understood the importance of my request." The ex Death Eater said submissively.

"Lucius!" Hermione shouted and ran to him. She tried to hug her husband but the proud aristocrat was much taller than her and with her pronounced belly she just couldn't reach around his neck. She instantly started sobbing. Big tears fell from her brown eyes.

The older wizard tried to shush her, wondering whether something had actually happened or his wife had just one of her moments. Hopefully, this pregnancy would be over soon. Hermione settled in the parlor and accioed a big bowl of chocolate ice cream. The dark wizard paused in the doorway contemplating whether he ought to comfort his wife or running away as far as possible was still an option. Hoping she would at least share the ice cream he sat down next to her.

Hermione wiped the tears from her cheeks and shoved a big spoon full of ice-cream into her mouth. "I know, I've promised myself to never ever cry again because of those two idiots, but they can't just come back life, as if nothing had happened,- say ah."

Lucius spread his mouth and the younger witch shoved a spoon into it.

"- it's not like we weren't affected by the war. We had to live with it, I had to live with it as well! And now they expect me to be happy that they came back and disturb my well-ordered life!-"

"I'm going out." Draco entered the room and informed his father and stepmother.

"Don't be out for too long and don't drink too much we have to work tomorrow and don't bring any random blokes home!"

"Yes, mom."

"Your son is still not taking me seriously," Hermione complained.

"My son was also supposed to have grown up by now."

"As if dealing with him wasn't hard enough… with Ron and Harry back-"

Draco reappeared in the parlor, he sounded excited. "Did you just say Potter is back! The great Potter with his scar and his broom? Where was he the entire time? I bet he just couldn't get laid and was too embarrassed to admit it. You think he knows I knocked up his Ginny? I need to find him!"

With this, the young wizard flooed out.

Now it was Lucius sobbing in Hermione's lap. "This was supposed to be long over. I cannot go through it all over again. You have no idea what I have been through all those years. I hex Mr. Potter personally to the Bahamas…"

"Here have some ice cream." She shoved another spoon full into her husband's mouth. "I mean it was always Malfoy is a Death Eater here, Malfoy is the heir of Slytherin there. Malfoy is getting us caught. Malfoy this, Malfoy that. I ended up brewing polyjuice in second year."

"You did what?" Lucius asked.

Her aim must have been terrible, her well-bred pureblood had chocolate ice cream all over his fair skin. Hermione moved closer and licked it off. And there he was thinking that begging to the Dark Lord for the life of his failure of a son had been disgraceful... Hermione does the same with their daughter. Must be one of those disgusting muggle habits, a simple swish with her wand…

"I am not Rose," Lucius protested.

"Of course not, love." She said absently, petting her husband's head.

"I shall send a letter of complaint to Narcissa it was clearly her bed influence on Draco, Rose is such a good girl." Lucius insisted.

"MOMMA! HELP ME!"

"That might be a little premature. We should postpone that."

The couple rushed to their little one following the girl's cries to the grand entrance hall. Little Scorpius was sitting on the floor giggling. Looking up they found Rose many feet above the ground swinging on the massive bronze chandelier. The little girl was scared and crying loudly.

"How did she even manage to do that?!"

"Magic?" Lucius rolled his eyes.

"They aren't supposed to show until their about 7 years old. I've read all the books before she was born. That's not supposed to happen!"

"Rose does not appear to have gotten the message."

"Get her down there!" Hermione ordered.

"Why me?"

"Because she is your daughter!"

"She is yours as well."

"I can plausibly deny that."

"Where are you going?!"

"The bathroom!" Hermione cried.

"And how am I supposed to get her down safely?!"

"I don't know. You're the big bad Death Eater, figure it out!"

"Wingardium Leviosa."


	3. Three Broomsticks

**Three Broomsticks**

Ginny invited Harry and Ron to the Three Broomsticks to a Butterbeer or two. After 5 long years, no one seemed to take notice of the two war heroes. Only Madam Rosmerta commented on Ginny being a lucky girl for having found two attractive wizards to spend the night with, without recognizing them. The boys sported their drinks over the table.

"Blimey Ginny, you're not some kind of scarlet woman?!" Ron was scared of what had become of his little sister while he was abroad.

"Yes, I am. A witch needs to have some fun." Ginny smiled proudly.

A wizard walked by the table and kissed Ginny on both cheeks. "Ginny, good to see you. And there I was hoping we could spend the night together."

"Not tonight, Dave. Better luck next time. See you around."

Ron was furious. "You're not fucking that guy!"

"Every now and then. He's gotten quite good at it. I taught him well."

Ron was about to say something harsh about his baby sister's flamboyant sex life when Harry intervened. "I take it, you're not married then?"

"Merlin no. I mean my children do need their fathers but I don't need a husband. Mom keeps pushing me to marry one of them, at least for appearance sake. Luckily Blaise knocked up some muggle and is in the middle of an unprecedented tricky fight over custody and Lucius knows that marring his openly gay son of to a Weasley will hardly improve his standing in society. Also, they're both such sluts."

"...and you're not, Weaslette?" Draco joined them and Ginny got up and gave him a hug.

"Guilty as charged."

Malfoy sneered at them. "So, it's true then. Potter and Weasley have finally returned. How lucky. What did you do all those years anyway?"

"We traveled the world by broom and couch-surfing. We played Quidditch with the people we met. It was great."

"You played Quidditch? That's exactly what Ginny does for a living. By the way, I got your girlfriend pregnant, jealous Potter?"

Ginny rolled her eyes. Within a couple of seconds the three wizards were standing, their wands out and ready to attack. Ginny sent a bunch of stinging hexes at all of them and told them to sit down. Harry changed the subject by inquiring about Hermione and how she ended up being the ferret's stepmother.

Ginny explained, "One might think the advantages of marrying Lucius Malfoy are obvious. He is rumored to be well endowed, good looking and this whole bad boy Death Eater image is a big turn on. He is also filthy rich, powerful and can be quite charming if he wants to be. But you know Hermione. She was charmed by his knowledge and understanding of complex … stuff. They spent over a year discussing politics, economics or the newest potions and other things no one but them could possibly find interesting, in his library, I swear I thought she had moved in there before they had gotten together and then things went pretty fast. Instead of having kinky sex with a Death Eater as every normal person would do, she spent another afternoon in the library, when Lucius handed her a wooden puzzle-box. He watched her squirm for about 40 minutes until she solved it and found a ring, with a super-rare stone, which name I quickly forgot, in it. They married 3 weeks later in a small ceremony. My entire family, including Charlie, minus you two, Draco, her parents, and even Narcissa were there. Another funny story, as a direct consequence of said wedding Percy, renounced our family once again, he now goes by Mr. Black. Anyway not nine months after the wedding little Rose was born. The irony, of course, is that now my own parents think I should live my life more than Hermione. They tend to overlook the fact that while she did marry, she married Lucius fucking Malfoy."

A wizard walked by and Draco smacked his butt the other wizard smiled back.

"That's disgusting."

Ron's hand formed a fist. "Blimey, How could you allow 'Mione to marry this monster?! Dad can't be OK with this."

"We didn't object to their union. Hermione wasn't miserable anymore and we've already lost Fred and you two. Our parents wouldn't do anything that could mean losing Hermione as well."

"I will fight for her!" Ron exclaimed and apparated away.

"You didn't tell him," Draco said with a smile on his face.

"Tell him what?"

"Oh, I forgot to tell him what happened to the last lunatic who wanted to save Hermione from her evil husband," Ginny shrugged, "I know Ron, he won't learn his lesson otherwise. Anyway, Hermione might have hexed his balls off."

Draco instantly crossed his legs and Harry covered his crotch with his hands.

"Come on guys. It was really funny. You should have seen the Malfoy men, both of them flinched at her every movement for weeks."

"Yeah, Mione can be pretty scary," Harry said.

"Pretty scary? You haven't seen her pregnant. Last time Lucius brought Scorpius over, he ended up staying for dinner with my parents and Mrs. Zabini. Apparently, survival chances of dining with the 'black widow' are better than going home to his wife. If you still think Hermione is 'pretty' scary consider this. Lucius Malfoy, Voldemort's former second in command stayed afterward to enjoy drinks with my muggle loving dad."

"OK. Maybe there is a chance that Malfoy Sr. is not abusing her. I should talk to Hermione."

"You can stay at my place or are scared, Potter?"

"You wish, Malfoy."


	4. Morning at Malfoy Manor

**Morning at Malfoy Manor**

The following morning at Malfoy Manor, Hermione and Rose made their way to the breakfast table to find a hungover Draco and Harry waiting.

"Oh, Harry! If you liked Draco, you could have told me. I wouldn't have judged you. I'm so sorry that I hadn't noticed it sooner." Hermione said and hugged Harry who wanted to protest.

"We didn't –"

Lucius entered the room, he scanned the area and found his son sleeping on the table. He summoned an ancient encyclopedia and dropped the heavy tome onto the table."

"Father!" Draco shrieked.

"What did the lady of the manor say about nightly visits?"

"Potter isn't a quote 'random bloke'."

"We didn't even –" Harry tried to protest.

Lucius looked at the war-hero. "Well, in that case. Mr. Potter, I expect you to court my son properly."

"We didn't –"

"When do you two plan to explain to my ex-wife that she will not be getting a pureblooded son in law? May I watch?"

"Lucius!" Hermione shrieked.

"WE DIDN'T –"

"Where is your son?" Hermione asked Draco.

"What?"

Lucius looked at his boy. "Go upstairs and get Scorpius ready for breakfast."

"But father, can't you just once…"

"Definitely not. I was looking after your child yesterday. You only have to be a father for 3 days a week it is hardly that difficult. Now pull yourself together. If you can drink then you can also work."

Draco got up and ten minutes later rejoined them with an overly excited and joyful little boy. Lucius handed Hermione and Draco each a file.

"I only gave it to you yesterday, when did you have time to go over my work?" the blond wizard asked.

"You know your father, it's already half-past eight. He got up a couple of hours ago, otherwise, he couldn't get his workload done. And so do I, by the way," Hermione said.

"Merlin, you two are really the most boring people around."

"Draco!"

There was a knock on the door and a well-dressed elf lead Ron into the room. The red-haired wizard had his wand out and was ready to throw some curses when he recognized the dark-haired wizard. "Harry? What are you doing here?" he asked his best friend.

"Oh, hi Ron. Wanna join us for breakfast?"

"Sure mate."

"10 Galleon on a quick wedding before Yule," Lucius said leaning over to Hermione.

"Nah, I bet it takes Harry forever to pop the question," Hermione answered and they shook hands.

With a clap in the hands, breakfast appeared on the table. There were eggs, bacon, wild rice, and broccoli for everyone. Scorpius threw a little piece of the green vegetable at Draco while Hermione was busy cutting Rose's food and wasn't looking. At first, she didn't notice Draco returning the favor until Rose started giggling.

"Draco! No food-fights will be tolerated on my table," she said sternly.

"Yes, Mom."

"Now stop picking and eat your vegetables."

"Why do I have to eat broccoli? You know I hate that stuff. What kind of people eat broccoli for breakfast anyway?" Draco complained.

"First of all, you're now a father. You have to be a role model. Secondly, you hate everything that is green or even remotely reminds you of vegetables. So eat your broccoli or I swear I force-feed you."

"Father! Do something! Your wife is mistreating me."

"Draco! Eat your vegetables."

Ron started laughing.

"You Ronald will eat your broccoli as well," Hermione said to him, smiling devilish.

The young Weasley went silent in an instant. Harry eagerly swallowed the green stuff under Hermione's scrutinizing gaze. Rose stared at Draco. She used her little silver fork and picked up a big chunk of broccoli and ate it with pleasure. When she swallowed the last bit her eye's met again with Draco's. The little girl held her head high and smiled proudly. Draco stuck out his tongue.

"Draco! Be nice to your sister," Lucius scolded his son.

"It's not my fault! The little snitch is mocking me!"

"Draco! Stop blaming a three-year-old for your lack of table manners. Rose has been nothing but delightful all morning while you… well, you were yourself."

They finished their meal and Hermione and Draco were about to leave for work.

"You work?!"

"Yes, Ron I do. I may look like I swallowed a whale in whole but I still fit through the door. There is really no reason for me not to work."

"But what about Rose? Mom never worked."

"She's coming with me of course." Hermione smiled at her daughter and the little girl smiled back proudly.

"You can't bring your child to work!"

"I believe Ronald, that I know better what I can and cannot do. I have a desk job and for your information, Rose and I make a great team."

"What's wrong with you?! First, you become a Death Eater's mudblood whore than –"

Ron never got to finish the sentence as Hermione already hexed him. Harry grabbed Ron's arm and dragged him out of the house. Hermione started to cry. Having heard this from a friend hit her hard. This was so unfair. If they wanted to be part of her life they should support her not insult her. Lucius shushed her.

Looking at the grandfather clock Hermione realized she was a little late. She tried to pull herself together which wasn't working. Damn those hormones and now she needs to go to the bathroom. That thought made her cry even more. Who cries because they have to go to the loo? Lucius looked at his little girl. Rose looked confused.

"Promise me to look after your mother. She is having a rough time."

Rose nodded, not sure if she really knew what to do. "Because of the baby."

"And because of those two idiots." The former Death Eater explained and kissed her head.


	5. St Mungo's

**St. Mungo's**

Ten minutes later, Harry and Ron were sitting in the reception area of St. Mungo's. Ron had a huge red nose, green hair, and gigantic yellow blisters which oozed blue juices when touched, all over his body. Other than the fact that he looked terrible those body-modifications turned out to be quite painful as well. Harry buried his face in his palms. People stared and they were leaving a blue trail in the entrance hall.

"What the hell were you thinking, Ron?!"

"Sorry mate, I didn't mean it. But why did she have to marry Lucius fucking Malfoy?!"

Harry sighed. "You have to apologize. This time, you really went too far."

"I know, I really do but it is just so hard to accept and you know what is worst? She doesn't even look happy or did you see her laughing?"

"I don't know, but how much can you laugh if you had to teach the ferret table manners?"

"Mr. Weasley to room 322."

Arriving there, while leaving a blue trail the two wizards opened the door.

"By Merlin, Ron, Harry? Is that really you? Long-time no see. What happened to you?" a familiar voice inquired.

"Susan? How do you do? You're a healer now?"

"Yes, I am. What could you have done to warrant an assault like that? Did you upset a witch?" she asked.

"Try 'death eater's mudblood whore'," Harry said dryly.

"No Ron, you haven't said that, have you?"

"I'm sorry," he said sheepishly.

"Well, you're lucky to be still alive for what it's worth…" Susan said examining him.

"Her daughter was present," Harry explained.

"That explains a lot. I honestly don't know how much I can do about your situation. Hermione knows some nasty curses, plus curse damage is not my specialty but I don't think you'll have any lasting effects once the curse wears off."

"Blimey, can't you just do something about the pain."

"Take this potion, Ah and Harry how are things with you and Malfoy Jr.?" Susan winked.

"What?"

"You were seen together leaving the three broomsticks it was all over the Prophet."

"We're not –" Harry tried to explain.

"He's still a git, but a beautiful one. I shouldn't tell you that, it's unprofessional. But if he steps out of line, just threaten him to show him your vagina."

"What?!"

"You know I'm a healer specializing in witches' health, many feel more comfortable with a mediwitch. So I was naturally there when Ginny gave birth to her twins. Both Blaise and Draco rushed to the hospital. But while Blaise was allowed to wait outside, Mr. Malfoy made Draco go inside the birthing chamber to hold Ginny's hand, something about taking responsibility, he said. I did warn Draco, that giving birth might be a little disturbing especially for wizards. You know Draco, he was just too curious for his own good. Well, the end of the story is, that while he used to be simply not attracted to witches, he now finds them disgusting or at least parts of them. A shame, his father did so well when Rose was born… a lot better than I did for what its worth. No wonder that man must have seen horrors… I wonder if I'll be all alone when this little one get's born." She patted her flat belly.

"You're pregnant?"

"I did date a few guys, but with my education and everything. I guess I just couldn't find a wizard I wanted to spend my life with. This is ok, I mean we're still young and so. But I'm the last of the Bones and I wanted to keep my family alive. Also not having given birth is a big handicap in my line of work. So I talked to Pansy, you know her baby was fathered by some unknown muggle. I bet she doesn't even know the names of the possible fathers, I think she just wanted to piss off her parents. Anyway, I didn't want to do that to man. I mean you two would surely want to know if there was a little one with half your DNA, that's what Hermione called it, was running around. I started to look for help and found an older French wizard who was willing to assist. I agreed to spend 2 weeks annually in France. It was a good decision, I feel liberated from the burden and now I can freely look at wizards that interest me. So… when you feel better you could ask me out." Susan said in a flirtatious tone to Ron.

"Sure, why not? I won't forget it… you don't happen to know where Hermione works?"

"Of course I do. She works at the Ministry in the creature department. Although, Hermione is currently busy with the Zabini case."

"Thanks, Susan. You're a lifesaver."

"No problem guys. Ah, and before I forget it, Harry, you might want to drop by your relatives as well."

"Why?"

"Spoiler Alert."


	6. Ministry

**Ministry**

Ron and Harry entered the Ministry of Magic at the phone-box. It was the nearest entrance, but due to Ron's injury, it still took them a while to get there. There was also a clear trail of blue fluids leading from a seemingly abandoned shop to the red phone-box.

"Remove your shirt." Harry urged his friend.

"What?! No! I won't run bloody naked through the MoM!"

"You have to. You're leaving blue stuff everywhere. Unless there is some evidence as to where it came from we're risking exposure to muggle."

Reluctantly and under heavy cursing the red-haired wizard undressed. They left his dirty clothes in front of the phone-box visible to muggle and entered the building. Ron's face now matched his red nose. Standing in the queue in nothing but his slips and socks they waited for their turn.

"We're here to apologize…" Ron started.

"Room 304." The older witch at the reception said with a raised eye-brow.

"You're not asking who we want to see?"

"No need to. You look humiliated and still wear St. Mungo's bracelet but appear otherwise unharmed. You'll find Madame Malfoy in room 304."

"Thank you."

People stared at them. Yet no one was kind enough to offer Ron his robes, probably because he was still oozing blue pus. They found Hermione's office. The blond girl in the hallway in front of it playing with enchanted dinosaurs was a tell-tale-sign. The two wizards moved closer but before they could enter, Rose obstructed the door. Harry instantly backed off. The small child had a look on her face he knew all too well. Despite her size, she looked just as terrifying as her mother does. Ron pulled his wand out of his underwear and pointed it at the young witch. Rose looked even more determined.

"Ron! Stop it! We're here to apologize hexing a child won't save us."

"Fine! She is so tiny, we could simply lift her up and walk through," Ron said tocking hin wand back into his pants.

"I wouldn't do that."

"Malfoy! What are you doing here?"Harry asked.

"Working. Father just owled this contract… I couldn't find anything wrong with it. Tell Hermione to double-check it for me."

"Why don't you give it to her yourself, git?"

"because I don't want to go against my baby-sis."

"You're afraid of a baby?" Ron asked almost as if it was a dare and pushed the girl aside.

BOOM!

The red-haired flew against the wall and Rose started to scream loudly.

"I told you," Draco said and ran away.

"Git."

"What is going on here!?" Hermione screamed, her wand pointed at the two wizards who were once her best friends. Rose immediately hid behind her mother. She only wanted to save her mommy from those bad wizards.

"Tell her we aren't bad wizards," Harry demanded.

"You hurt my mommy."

"It's ok, little one," Hermione said and lifted her up and placed her daughter onto her chair.

"What are you two doing here anyway?"

Harry looked at his feet. "We came to apologize…"

"Sorry 'Mione. I didn't want to call you a 'death eater's whore'."

"Mommy? What's a whore?"

"You two! Out now!"

"Blimey, 'Mione. We did just apologize."

"You did a terrible job." Hermione yelled shoving them out of her office. She threw the door. There was a loud 'bang' and Rose flinched. The witch warded her office and sunk down. Sitting on the floor she buried her face in her hands and cried. Rose hopped off the large office chair and joined her mother. Unsure as to how to proceed, tears fell from her big blue eyes as well. The young girl leaned her head against her mother's shoulder and petted her clumsily.

"I can take care of you, mommy. I'm already 3."

Determined not to burden her little girl, Hermione tried to get up. It was complicated. She crawled to her desk and dragged herself up. If somebody else than Rose had seen her…

Harry dragged the half-naked Ron away from the office ignoring Draco's laughter.

"What were you thinking?!" he asked Ron.

"I did apologize… if it wasn't for that monster kid of hers… It's Croonkshanks all over again."

"I'm not sure if that's the same…"

"I'm telling you. This child is pure evil. No wonder, considering who fathered it. Merlin's ball's, could you imagine fucking that slimy old snake, disgusting?"

"Snakes are not actually slimy, they are warm and muscular and beautiful…" Harry trailed off.

"Aww. That's so gross. As if you and the ferret are not worse enough… I never wanted to know about your sex-life. Blimey, what do you see in him anyway?"

"What? I'm not sleeping with Draco! AND I'M NOT GAY!"

Harry shouted through the entrance hall. Everybody went silent and stared at them.

"Sure mate, whatever you say."

Harry let out and frustrated groan.


	7. Grandmother Granger

**Grandmother Granger**

Having calmed down, Hermione sent a note to her parents. She took Rose and a big textbook titled 'Genetics' by Russell and the handbook of genetics volume 4 & 5 and flood home. She rushed to her daughter's room and started to pack. Rose was trying to help but the witch was not in the mood to deal with it and was a lot more annoyed with the girl's efforts than usual. Lucius who just finished packing for his upcoming business trip joined her.

"I hope you are not expecting me to take our little one to Greece. I cannot see her enjoying drinking with my business partners."

"You drink too much anyway."

The former Death Eater looked alarmed.

"Don´t worry. I was dropping her by at my parent's. I just can't have her around right now. Ron and Harry could drop by trying to apologize at any moment."

"You don't know that for sure…"

Hermione slapped him. "Sometimes I forget what an a- a- … you are. They are my best friends! Of course, they want to make up with me! How could you say something like that!"

Her husband wiped the tears from her cheeks.

"I just do not want you to be disappointed. We are still talking about Weasleys."

"You're impossible."

While the elder Malfoy checked his documents, Hermione took Rose and apparated them to her parent's house. Since they have gotten her note, Hermione's mother was home while her father was still busy in their dental surgery. The tiny witch was excited to see her grandmother, at least half as much as seeing all the electrical devices. Rose hugged her grandmother and ran straight into the living room and started to play with the tv.

"Hi mom, it's good to see you," Hermione said.

Dr. Granger led her daughter into the kitchen and started to prepare tea.

"I was hoping you could take care of Rose for a couple of days…"

"Isn't that the job of your nazi-husband? Or is it beneath him to parent his half-bred child? Perhaps he is simply too busy torturing innocents?"

"Mom, please. Not today."

"I just don't understand why you married this bigot. You used to surround with good people. I still remember Harry and Ron…"

"DON'T MENTION THEM!"

There was a loud crack and the teacup burst leaving porcelain shards all over the kitchen floor. Hermione flicked her wand and the mess sorted itself.

"I'm sorry," the witch said crying, "pregnancy hormones and all…"

"I thought you were over them." Her mother sounded concerned.

"So did I. But I need an answer right now. Do you want to spend time with your granddaughter or should I tell Rose you don't and she has to go to Athens with my Death Eater husband? I'm sure Rose would enjoy business negotiations just as much as playing with you."

"You can't just expect me to step in every time your husband has other priorities."

"My husband isn't the problem here. I'm currently under a lot of stress and would like to know that my daughter is safe. And the last time we saw each other you were complaining about not seeing her enough."

"I did, but that doesn't mean you can drop her off whenever it suits you. I have work to do."

"So do I. We all work. Having a job is hardly an achievement. I don't complain that much when you make me clean your oven. All I do is, ask you once to help me out. Rose is a good girl, she eighter accompanies Lucius or me to work. She won't make any trouble since she can play by herself, also you have a waiting room full of toys."

"For you, it's just a tiny spell. I would have to scrub for hours," Dr. Granger said.

"A spell, that took me weeks to develop so it wouldn't damage the electrical devices," Hermione added.

"Fine, but what if she says something weird…"

"She is still only three years old."

"OK. But don't you think it's a little early for you to have a family of your own, you're still young. You should focus on yourself, your career, and date nice guys your age. Don't you think a family could wait for 10, 15 years, I would have retired by then and could help you out more easily. Also, I'm way too young to be a grandmother…"

"Well, technically not-," Hermione said holding her hands over her very pregnant belly. "Don't you think it's a little too late to have this discussion? Also, all of my friends have started families of their own. We fought very hard for a little peace. And if you have a problem with your role as a grandmother you should talk to me."

"I love Rose, I really do, despite her father. It's just that all of my friend's children are graduating from university, have fun partying and start careers. My friends go out with their children and on short trips. We only go to the playground babysitting… we're having friends over for BBQ and wine on Wednesday, you should join us they haven't seen you in ages."

"Fine, I'll be there. I'll also tell Lucius to pick Rise up as soon as he returns."


	8. Dinner at the Burrow

**Dinner at the Burrow**

In the evening they met up for a family-dinner with Ron's parents at the Burrow. George who had moved back with his parents after his twin brother's death and Ginny who enjoyed her mother's support with raising her children were present as well. Molly hugged the boys tightly. Tears were running down her cheeks. "I've missed you soo much. Don't do this ever again to me Ronald!"

"Sorry, mom," he said sheepihly.

"It's ok now, come in. Ginny set the table. Your father is coming home any minute."

"Why me? Can't George do it?" Ginny complained.

"I've already degnomed the garden," the one-eared wizard protested.

"Enough! Look, who finally came home."

"Hi Harry, and who are you?" Goerge mustered him, "Red hair, hand-me-down clothes, you must be a Weasley. Could it be that you're our long lost brother? What happened to you? Did you get lost?"

"Not funny, George."

Arthur returned from work and the six of them gathered around a huge amount of Mrs. Weasley's home-cooked food.

"How was your journey? Have you been to muggle places as well? Are muggles in other places different from our domestic ones? Have you seen my new items? This is an iPod, makes terrible noises. Muggles use it to ward off dangerous beasts when they run through forests…"

"Arthur! Not now! We're eating," Molly insisted.

"Sorry love this it too exciting."

"So Harry, is it true? You and Lucius Malfoy's son? I thought you hated each other," George asked and Arthur nearly choked on his food.

"Does Lucius know? If he threatens you, you don't have to fight him alone. We will always support you, Harry, no matter what. You know that."

"He actually seemed rather supportive but we're not-"

"You have to talk to him, Arthur. He is far too tolerant about those things. Ever since he divorced there is a real divorce-epidemic going on. When we got married there was still an understanding of responsibility."

"What has the world come to? There is mom once again complaining that Lucius Malfoy of all people is too liberal. You should be grateful that it's now socially acceptable to separate because it means that you and dad are still together because you want to and not because there is no other option. Or do you secretly want to get rid of him?"

"I'm staying with dad," George announced.

"Mpf, of course not, I love your father."

Harry and Ron enjoyed their food particularly. Has it really been five years since they last tasted Molly's cooking?

"We met Susan Bones at St. Mungo's," Ron stated.

"You had a baby without telling us?!" George asked.

"Not funny, anyway, she asked me out. Which is kinda weird, because she's pregnant with another wizard's child…"

"Your generation has no sense of propriety."

"Your lucky about that," Ginny started, "if she hadn't yet solved her bloodline-issue she would have never asked you out. In case you haven't noticed you're not exactly marriage-material. You don't have any NEWTs, work experience or a job-"

"He can work for me," George decided while examining Ron's blisters, "That's wonderful, children will love it!"

"George! Stop playing with your brother's blisters. I'm not too old to hex you. Who taught you manners?" Molly cried.

"Apparently no one."

"-Also, you have never lived by yourself and I bet your domestic skills are still terrible, and to top it off, you abandoned your family for 5 long years. You didn't even send a letter! We didn't even know it something had happened to you if you are still alive!"

"Ginny! That's enough! My Ronekins has come home, that's what's important."

"That's so unfair! You keep complaining about my life's choices but Ron made you cry every night, for months. I made sure you didn't suffer from empty nest syndrome! But now it's ok because Harry and Ron have returned."

"The war was hard on them. It's time to move on," Molly insisted.

"The war was hard on all of us! I've lost a brother too! We've had to deal with it all, while they simply ran away. They never had to listen to their family cry themselves to sleep."

Swallowing the Shephard's pie was impossible for Harry. He didn't know how hard it was for everybody. How could he? Voldemort was dead. That was what was important, wasn't it?

Molly stroke his back. "It's ok Harry. Eat your pie. I also have some dessert prepared. You two can sleep in Ron's room I haven't changed a thing."

"What about Percy's? His room is bigger," Ron argued.

"It's a nursery now."


	9. 4 Privet Drive

**4 Privet Drive**

Harry apparated to an abandoned road near Privet Drive. He looked around but as expected no one was near and therefore no one had discovered the young wizard. He took a minute to let the dizziness fade and walked to his relatives' house. Seeing the familiar surroundings weight heavy on his heart, he had never thought he would ever return to this place. Yet, here he was.

Harry was curious about Susan's implications, but he wished for Ron's support, they've done everything together for so many years. Unfortunately, he couldn't bring him due to his current condition. Oozing blue pus onto his aunt's carpet wouldn't do any good to their already damaged relationship. The walk to the house he spent the worst years of his life in, and Harry had experienced a lot of bad things, felt much longer than he thought it would.

Suddenly, he was on the front door. What does one say to people you haven't seen in years and were never close, to begin with? Damn it! They had to make up with Hermione she would have thought things through in advance. He only wanted to spend a couple of weeks abroad and ending up traveling the world for years. God, most of the time they didn't even know what month it was. Time difference, Ron had claimed.

Being a Gryffindor, he could not back out now that he was here. Harry took a deep breath and rang the doorbell. It took forever, or at least it felt that way until the door was opened. Dudley was standing in front of him. He was still big but had lost some pounds and looked much healthier, fitter, and, for a lack of words, better in general now. He was wearing a blue shirt and a black pair of corduroy trousers.

"Harry? Is that really you?"

Before the young wizard could answer, his muggle cousin took a step forward and hugged him tightly.

"It's so good to see you. I've missed you so much," Dudley said kissing Harry's cheeks. "Your timing is perfect as well, Mom is preparing tea right now. Come in."

Harry was completely dumbfounded. What the hell happened here?! He was barely gone and Hermione married the enemy, Ginny has a child with each Draco and Blaise, Pansy got pregnant by a Weasley and a muggle and Dudley Dursley had missed him.

Dudley opened the cupboard and placed another set of tableware for Harry. Aunt Petunia walked in and placed a big cake on the table. She cut three pieces of cake and offered Harry the biggest of them. The wizard took a fork of chocolate cake and asked were uncle Vernon was. His aunt let out a sob and hid in the kitchen. Looking at the framed photo of his uncle hanging on the wall, Harry realized the man must have passed.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't know," the wizard said trying to rescue the moment.

"It's OK, Harry. You knew my father, he was never living healthily and was always stressed out and choleric. One day his heart simply couldn't take it anymore… I've been trying to lead a better life ever since." He said proudly.

"Were you expecting a visitor?" Harry asked pointing at the forth plate on the table.

"Oh, that's exactly what I wanted to talk about with you." Dudley retrieved a small blush blue box from a drawer and showed it to his long lost cousin. Inside was a white-gold ring with a sizable brilliant-cut diamond. Its shine was captivating.

"I've met a beautiful witch. We've been together for almost 18 months. I want to propose to her on our anniversary, but I know very little about wizard culture… I was wondering if you could help me."

"Sure-"

The bell rang. Dudley quickly hid the ring and Harry promised to owl him. Petunia meanwhile opened the door. A witch entered the house.

"Harry? What are you doing here? I've heard rumors about your return."

"Cho? What do you want with someone like my cousin?"

"Said the one who is seeing the infamous Malfoy hair."

"We're not-" Harry tried to defend himself.

"You two know each other?" Dudley asked.

"We were in the same dueling club…" Cho explained.

"Until your best friend sold us out."

"To your boyfriend. We got closer after my Cederic was murdered."

"Wait! Cedric? That name sounds familiar. Harry was always screaming his name at night. Are you two telling me you had the same boyfriend? Wizard culture is so weird."

"It wasn't like that-" Harry tried to explain but the Asian witch cut him short.

"It was a very long time ago. What's important now is that you finally found your cousin. We should celebrate. You could have told me though that your cousin is Harry Potter."

"Why? Is he a big deal among your people or so?"

"I just defeated Voldemort and so on…but you know, no big deal."

"We are a small people. Everybody knows everyone," Cho explained.

"I see. It's all because you attend the same school. A toast to Hogwarts then," Dudley said raising his cup.


	10. Family Malfoy

**Family Malfoy**

„How did it go?" her stepson asked as soon as she returned home.

"A lot worse than usual. One might think that after 5 long years they have gotten used to the idea of Lucius and I. speaking of the devil, where is your father?"

"In his office correcting my mistakes. He doesn't agree with my business strategy," Draco said bitterly.

"I could have told you that. Anyway, my mom suddenly decided she didn't like being a grandma. I frankly don't see her problem. I like it and I'm babysitting Scorpius all the time."

"Speaking of him. Now that my sister is annoying your mom, you could watch over him for me."

"Definitely not," Hermione insisted.

"But you're his favorite grandmother."

"No that is Molly."

"But she isn't his actual… Oh wait, it was the other way around. I keep forgetting I had a child with a Weasley."

"If you don't stop upsetting me I might have another accident," Hermione threatened him.

"You had an accident? What happened?"

"I burst porcelain," the young witch admitted reluctantly.

"You had a case of accidental magic? Merlin, Hermione this is bad. Witches don't have such instances by the time they become old enough to carry a wand. Or is it the other way around? You know those phoenix-ash-problems…"

"I know but there is so much going on right now with Harry and Ron, my pregnancy and my mom was being difficult… talking to you I can certainly understand her worries. Who wants to constantly watch their grandchildren when raising your own kids was hard enough and it's now their turn."

"Nice try, Gryffindor. How did you persuade her to take Rose?"

"I simply told her that if she didn't want Rose I would tell her and my Death Eater husband would pick up the shards."

"Nice move, one might think you have a little Slytherin in you," the blonde wizard commented.

"It's actually quite huge," Hermione said stroking her belly.

"Argh, I never wanted to know those things about my father, that's so disgusting. Although, I can't say I'm surprised. Thinking of my own python, I would say it runs in the family."

"What?! I was talking about your unborn sibling, you pervert. Not that your father has anything to complain about in this department… Has it ever occurred to you that normal people are not constantly talking about dicks?"

"It's not my fault. I'm underfucked," he defended himself.

"Aww, Draco! Stop being so crass! And shouldn't you be telling Harry this instead of me?"

"I'll send him a howler."

"I don't think that's a good idea…"

"But mummy!"

"What is going on here?" the Malfoy patriarch asked as he entered the room.

"Your son does not want to talk about our sex-life. Unfortunately, he's a lot less discreet when it comes to his own," Hermione said.

"Why is it always my son when you have a hard time teaching him manners?"

Hermione raised a brow in a very Malfoy-fashion.

"Argh, you're not still doing it, are you? Come on Hermione, he's sooo old!"

"Draco!"

"It may come as a surprise to you, son, but witches do not get pregnant from kissing."

"Your father isn't too old," the young witch said blushing.

"How is your courtship progressing, son?"

"He was about to send Harry a howler because your son is I quote 'underfucked'."

Lucius tilted his head and inhaled through his teeth. "It appears customs have changed drastically since I was your age… you have three child-free days a week and I might not be completely opposed to having your adored over for dinner. That is, of course, only in case young Mr. Potter's table manners a significantly better than yours."

Hermione smiled and kissed her husband on his cheek. "Thank you."

The older wizard grunted. He shrunk his luggage. "I have to go," he said walking towards the large grey marble fireplace.

"You have to say goodbye to your family first."

"Do I?"

"Yes, you do," the younger witch insisted.

The dark wizard turned around cupped her cheeks and placed a kiss on her temple. He moved his flat hands over her pregnant belly. "I'm looking for his head," he explained.

"You know, we might have another daughter."

"We can't. The nursery was already painted in blush pink."

"I'm sure a baby-girl wouldn't mind, we don't live in the 20s anymore."

"Hm, you did marry a conservative wizard," he answered going onto his knee and kissed his wife's belly. "Be nice to your mother. And in case anything occurs… I am all but an emergency-portkey away."

"It'll be fine. You'll only be gone for a few days."

He nodded and took a handful of floo-powder.

"Haven't you forgotten to bid farewell to your other child," Draco added to the conversation.

"I have seen Rose off before she went to her grandparents'," Lucius said.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Yeah, because Rose is the only other child you have."

Lucius walked up to his adult son and cupped his cheeks with both his hands and kissed his head. The young wizard stood there disturbed and petrified. His father took a step back and nudged his finger on his nose. "Do not cause your mother any more trouble." And with that, the former Death Eater vanished through the fire-place. Hermione had a hard time suppressing her laughter.

"Argh, what was that?!"

"You asked for it… the more pressing question is what are you going to do about Harry? Hopefully, you're not still considering the howler."

"Do you know how good his table manners are?"

"Harry is not bad-mannered per se, but his relatives mistreated him, so I don't think he has a lot of experience with formal dinners. And I don't think Lucius will be nearly as forgiving with him as he is with you during breakfast…"

"I think I have an idea," Draco said leaving the room.


	11. Ron at work

**Ron at Work**

Ron's day started early, a lot earlier than usual. He was still tired when George dragged him to Diagon Alley to his shop. The only other people around were other shopkeepers preparing for the day just like them. George, of course, gave Ron the 'house-elf-chores'. The younger brother had to wipe the floor… if only he remembered the spell.

5 years of couch-surfing erased all of his meager domestic skills, therefore he ended up wiping the floor by hand which was tedious but otherwise working well. That was at least until Pansy dropped Fred Jr. off to spend the day shopping and the young boy did his name all honor. Within a few minutes, he managed to destroy everything his uncle had worked so hard on. George fixed the chaos his son created with a swift flick of his wand and Ron was frustrated before the shop even opened.

Form thereon things went only worse for the war-hero. It started with a young boy who just bought a cauldron full of pink, glitter slime, his mother was busy gossiping and noticed it too late. The mini wizard took the slime and threw it at Ron with all his might. The impact made a few of his blisters burst. Seeing the wizard his hair full of slime and him oozing blue pus, the mother's face turned red. She should have kept an eye on her child.

George witnessed the incident and rushed towards them. The mother was going to apologize when he simply kneeled down and offered the boy chocolate. Then he placed a glass jar next to his baby brother and announced that for a sickle everyone was allowed to pop Ron's blisters. The young customers at the joke-shop were thrilled and jumped to the offer.

"You can't do this to me, I'm your brother!" Ron protested.

"That's exactly why I'm doing it. Come on, it's fun. Why else do you think I gave you this job?"

"I'm going to hex you."

"You won't. You need the money, brother. Or do you want to ask our baby sister, a single mom, for help?"

George was right. The only thing more humiliating than this was asking his family and friends for money, especially since they all had little mouths to feed. He hated being poor. His father never earned much but he at least a job he loved.

Even if the young wizard to start a family he simply couldn't. No witch would want to marry a wizard who couldn't feed himself let alone a family. A witch wants a wizard with a house and a garden, he should also own land. A witch wants to dress in fine robes and to be taken to fancy restaurants. A witch wants a house-elf and to be gifted jewelry. Ron could provide none of it. But a Lucius Malfoy could.

His hand formed a fist. Even after his divorce and paying damages he was still a wealthy wizard with a huge manor-house and an excessive amount of cash to spend. Who cared about his war-crimes when he was loaded? Not even people witnessing him in his Death Eater robes doing all those crimes he was never convicted for, looked the other way.

Hermione now dressed in expensive robes, wearing pearl-earrings being catered for by an house-elf. She once tried to free them. Hypocrite. How could she show so little respect to his family who always cared for her? They are good people but too poor to satisfy a witch. Bill had to save up money for years, living like a dog to afford to get married and live in a small cottage and Fleur still has to work. What were his parents thinking? They did not have the money for one wedding let alone seven…

Being target practice and playing guinea pig for George's newest creations was not nearly as much fun as it sounded. And if it wasn't embarrassing enough, he saw Susan enter the store. Ron's first instinct was to hide behind a shelf but an evil-looking hag blocked the way.

In his desperation, he picked up a small child and hid his face behind its body. The child immediately began playing with the wizard's enlarged scarlet nose. It wasn't really painful but the would have preferred it if the kid gave him a break. The little one had other plans. It found it amusing to watch the wizard squirm in discomfort.

"That's sooo cute."

Damn, she had found him.

"Hi, Susan. I didn't expect to see you here."

"Hi Ron, I brought you your pain-potion."

"Thanks." Ron put forth his hand. Susan looked disgusted at his slimy arm.

"I think, I'll just place it on the table… you're doing great with children," the witch said in an almost dreamy voice and let out a sigh.

"You know, it's great that you turned your weakness into a strength. I know many wizards who would have hid at home in your condition, but not you. How about I'll grab you launch? You must be hungry."

"I am. Thanks, Susan, you're the best."

"No problem," she said smiling.


	12. Back to the Ministry

**Back to the Ministry**

Since Ron had to work, Harry decided to take matters into his own hands. It was probably for the best. He apparated to London and entered the nearest toy-store. Standing in front of a shelf packed with teddy-bears he felt lost. Not knowing which to choose he picked the largest hoping it would translate into his true feelings. The lovely clerk put a red ribbon around its neck and with that Harry made his way back to the Ministry of Magic.

Thinking of all the things Ginny had said the not so young wizard wanted to get his life in order. His first stop, therefore, was Minister Shacklebolt's office. It has been a long time since he had last spoken to his fellow Order of the Phoenix member. After all the various greetings the young war-hero had received so far, he was anxious. The minister's secretary offered him tea and biscuits and Harry made himself comfortable in the large office while waiting. After about half an hour the former Auror came back from his meeting.

"Hi, Kingsley," Harry said shyly.

"Welcome back, Harry. I hope you had a great time. Merlin knows you deserved it. How come you came to see me old wizard of all people?" The older wizard greeted him in a friendly tone.

"Em, it's a little embarrassing, but you know I've always wanted to be an Auror and em…"

"And you were wondering if I could offer you a position. Do you have any NEWTs or something comparable?"

Harry's face turned red from shame. How could he have missed that detail?

"It's not that important anyway. We're short-staffed and you have plenty of battle experience. Mr. Chandler will be more than thrilled to take you under his wings… you could start tomorrow but as your friend I want you to be aware of a few things first. The profession on an Auror is not as popular as it once was anymore. Life is a lot more peaceful those days, thanks to you I might add. Also due to safety and privacy concerns bringing your children to work is not permitted in our line of duty. If you ever find yourself in dire need of a baby sitter during an operation you can drop it off at the reception, we magical people must stick together."

"It won't be a problem, Minister."

"Good, I'll see you tomorrow before work."

Harry took the elevator to the 3rd floor with the gigantic bear under his arm. The other witches and wizards had a hard time fitting into the small cabin and not so few of them didn't appreciate having a stuffed leg in their face. Maneuvering through the narrow hallways proved challenging as well. Only as he knocked on the door, Harry realized that he was a wizard and could have simply used a spell to make his cargo smaller.

"Come in."

Harry entered the office nervous about Hermione's reaction.

"Harry?! What are you doing here?"

"Hey, I just wanted to talk to you… Where is Rose?"

"I dropped her off at my parents'. I thought it would be better for her with so much going on."

The raven-haired wizard swallowed hard. Nothing hurt as much as your best friend feeling the need to protect her child from him. He would take the cruciatus any time over this.

"I'm sorry but you know Ron. He never meant to hurt you, he loves you. He just wasn't thinking…"

"I know that," Hermione snapped, "The problem with him is this, that he never thinks about me! Let me guess you never meant to abandon me either, it just so happened. Why do I always have to be the one who forgives everything? Am I not worth to be taken into consideration?!"

"You've forgiven the Malfoys and they did a lot worse than having an outburst after discovering that your best friend is married to the life-long enemy."

"That's exactly the difference! You're my friends but Draco… I've never expected anything but the worst of him. So when he took a step towards me I accepted, because we are the good guys. We forgive and we move on. That's what breaks the circle of violence. But you? There was a time we would have done everything for each other…"

"We still do! You know it's just kind of hard to accept your marriage… I just can't understand what yo use in him," Harry tried to explain.

"Of course you can't. You weren't here. You weren't here when I graduated. You weren't here when I got married. You weren't here when I passed my first bill protecting the rights of house-elves. You weren't here when I gave birth to my gorgeous little daughter and you weren't here when she was so sick and I desperate. But you know what. My husband was on my side at every step and so was Draco of all people… I once had different dreams as well. I wanted a big wedding with both my magical friends and my muggle relatives one day in a distant future. After I made a great career I would have had a single child, probably due to biological reasons and when it starts Hogwarts I would have aimed for MoM… But this isn't how life works," Hermione spat breaking down in tears.

Harry hugged her and petted her head. "I'm so sorry Hermione. I promise you to never ever leave you again."

The young witch calmed down and looked at Harry. "You could drop by at Andromeda's place. I'm sure Teddy would love a teddy. Rose is currently into LEGO. Buy her a set that's too difficult for her so you could help her," Hermione suggested.

"You've been living with Slytherin's for too long."


	13. BBQ

**BBQ**

"Are you sure you don't want to come with me?" Hermione asked.

"Why would I?" Draco countered.

"Because we're a family and I'd like you to meet my parents' friends. I'm sure they would love to meet you as well."

"I see, pregnancy dementia. Hermione, I'm your stepson and not your husband. If anybody ought to accompany you it would be my father."

"But I don't want to go alone. I don't know what to talk about and I'm not even allowed to drink," she whined.

"You're not alone. Rose will be with you."

"Yeah, because my little daughter makes such a great substitute for grown-up's conversations."

"They might place you at the kiddie-table," the blonde wizard said.

"There won't be a kiddie-table since Rose will be the only child present."

Hermione was standing in the bathroom fussing over her hair. The auburn bush was even more untamable than usual and it was hard to find a dress she both fitted into and still looked muggle-ish. She picked a couple of wine-bottles from the cellar and apparated to her parents' house. While she was looking forward to seeing the people she spent her early childhood with, Hermione was also anxious since she had rarely seen them since she started Hogwarts.

She walked to the table and placed the bottles before sitting down. Hermione naturally was the first to arrive. Her mother was preparing salads and her father heated the grill. Rose found the Gameboy much more interesting than her mother.

After half an hour, the witch was joined by her mother's old schoolfriend. The lawyer arrived in her new Bentley and poured wine into glasses.

"Not for me," Hermione said stroking her belly.

"Are you… I mean… is there a baby?"

"Yes, I'm pregnant," she answered proudly.

"But how?"

The young witch blinked twice. Surely she didn't have to explain how this works.

"I mean, aren't you younger than Chris' son? I just always thought you were more thorough and responsible –"

Hermione wanted to tell the lady that she was more than capable of coordinating her contraception but the lady didn't let her.

"-Oh wait, Hasn't your mother said something about a little girl?"

"Rose, her name is Rose and she is currently inside playing with her newest discovery," Hermione said in an annoyed tone.

The older lady stared at her with an open mouth. Her father's friend Chris, an investment banker, joined the party with his wife and son John. The two young adults strolled through the small garden chatting about his university and their travels. It was a pleasant conversation until he leaned forward to kiss Hermione. She slapped him.

"What's wrong with you? You could have told me earlier you weren't interested, things were going so well," John complained.

The witch rubbed her wedding-band into his face.

"I'm married and expecting my second child anytime now. What the hell made you think I was interested in anything more than chatting?!"

"Your father told me he left you for your friend Athena," John answered.

"My husband is on a business trip to Athens, as for my friend Minerva, she is 75." Hermione rolled her eyes. "At least I know now why I married a Slytherin… Still, that doesn't explain what you want with a pregnant woman. Is it something kinky? Have you crossed wheelchair already of your list?! Don't give me this look. I have a son your age."

"We're about the same age," John said.

"Well, technically he's my stepson."

Back at the table, the young witch heard Chris' wife complain about her being a bad influence. Hermione was short of exploding when John defended his mother. "You really are awfully young to have a baby."

"Just because you can't afford to have a family of your own doesn't mean I can't either. I have a stable income."

"You should go to university," his mother said.

"What for? To find a good husband? Turns out I don't need a degree for that."

"To mature and become self-reliant. You can't expect your sugar-daddy to take care of you forever," John's mother said, sneering at the witch.

"That's rich coming from you. You've been a society-wife for the last 30 years," Hermione shouted back.

"That's enough! I won't allow some chit of a girl to talk to me like this!"

"Yet you question my life's choices freely. You have your husband feed you for decades even though the staff is taking care of all domestic chores for you, yet when my husband earns a little more than I do, I'm the gold-digger. Molly raised 7 wonderful children on a tiny budget. Well, six wonderful ones and Percy. What did you achieve?"

"At least I raised my child well," the older woman said to Mrs. Granger.

"I believe in allowing my daughter to decide her own faith," the dentist remarked dryly.

"There are times we need to ensure they do the right thing."

"And you decided what's right or not? Our children are adults. We should support them regardless of our own opinions."

"I'm right here. You can talk to me. I can take care of myself," the witch demanded.

"I can see that," the older woman said pointing at Hermione's belly.

The women pushed each other around for a while until the family left. The tipsy lawyer found it amusing and handed Hermione her card. Just in case.

"I still don't like your husband," Dr. Granger said to her daughter in private.


	14. Going to the cinema

**Going to the Cinema**

When Ron got home from work he was surprised to find Draco and Blaise sitting on his sofa. George wasn't. Each of them was holding his son in one and a bottle of butterbeer in the other hand.

"What are those snakes doing here?!"

"Waiting for Ginny and Pansy to get arrive and get dressed," the dark-skinned wizard explained.

Mrs. Weasley was in the kitchen preparing a feast. The kids shouldn't go out hungry. Pansy arrived first carrying big beauty case and Ginny followed shortly after, still wet from the shower after training. George placed the dishes onto the table and asked Ron if he wanted to go to the cinema with them.

"You can't expect me to go out with Slytherins! Why are you spending time with them anyway? And what is a cinema?"

"The cinema is a place where you can watch movies, they're a bit like photographs only with longer running time and sound. It's pretty cool. Thanks to Mrs. Weasley we can have a little time for ourselves," Blaise explained.

"In case you haven't noticed, Weasley, we're a family now," Draco mocked.

"Not when I hex you," Ron screamed drawing his wand.

"Not under my roof!" Molly insisted as she collected the family around the table. Ginny and Pansy were already discussing what they should wear while the young wizards were more interested in which film to watch.

Arthur almost invited himself, going to a muggle-cinema was too exciting when his wife reminded him of being on diaper duty for tonight. Ron was still upset and sulking. It was hard to watch his family have such an easy conversation with the enemy when they treated him like a guest in his own home. The young wizard couldn't imagine that things changed so much in his absence, that he had no part in creating this new world and simply was made to accept all the changes.

The three Slytherins promised to drop by when Mr. and Mrs. Weasley had their date-night since hanging around, chatting, drinking butterbeer was so much fun together. Ron had a hard time trying not to lose it.

His sister and the Slytherin Princess left the table. Pansy carefully handed Molly her baby. To confuse the red-haired even further his mom seemed glad to have a little one in her arms in spite of not sharing any blood with the baby. The boys got their sons ready for bed while the girls styled each other's hair.

The odd clique left the Burrow leaving an overwhelmed Ron behind. Molly hushed a glance at the nursery before settling baby Parkinson. It was a weird sight. He was always made fun of for being from a blood-traitor family yet his three nephews here were all pureblooded. The only half-blood present was Pansy's baby girl.

"Don't tell them," Molly started "But I'm actually very proud of them. No matter how odd their family situation is, they always put their children first. You see, George and Pansy couldn't stand each other but by the time Fred was born they were a strong team… if you really like Ms. Bones you should bring her over, I wouldn't hate you for accepting her name either. I know how important it is for her."

When the two Weasleys and the three Slytherins arrived at the movies they started to fight over which movie to watch. The youngest Weasley didn't want to see a romantic comedy as it only upset her. She also didn't understand why any of them would. After all, after her Draco held the record for the longest relationship, with Harry as well, since he was seeing the war-hero for several days.

They opted for an action-movie because it sounded exciting and it would be a good way to sample the progress muggle technology made. Also, it was a big turn on and they would hunt for muggle afterward.

After the movie ended the group set together in a pub drinking cocktails. Pansy was flirting with a handsome muggle.

"Looks like you found your next baby's daddy," Draco commented and to the amusement of the clique, the boy disappeared.

"Thanks, Draco, if you don't stop scaring my suitors away I'll make you sleep with me."

"You can't rape me!"

"What would you do? Tell your father?"

They laughed out loud.

"No, but I could tell mom."

"Speaking of her, could you tell Hermione that I want custody over my child. I don't even care if it's magical or not," Blaise decided.

"I could talk to her but the Ministry wants to ensure that children are raised in the world they belong in. I think you should talk to Theo. He helped me with my betrothal contract after Ginny got pregnant…"

"Isn't he marrying Astoria Greengrass in a couple of weeks?"

"Yeah, it was a win-win situation. Father is Claudia Nott's most lucrative client and Theo had a hard time securing a mate due to his father's past discretions as a Death Eater. Also, I think Astoria is happy not having to fallow into my mother's footsteps."

"Purebloods," George said rolling his eyes, "Hey, we're blood traitor you made sure to remind us."

"I wouldn't want to be sold like cattle," Ginny said.

"That's not what you said when the Holyhead Harpies sold you to the Falmouth Falcons," Pansy said.

"That's different. I transferred."

"If you say so."


	15. Date with Draco

**Date with Draco**

When Harry received an invitation to a fine French restaurant from Draco he was shocked. What was the ferret planning? Why wasn't he telling people that they weren't together? Was it his way of messing with his archenemy?

But since the young wizard promised his cousin to help him with his proposal, this posed to be the ideal situation to find out more. He wrote Draco a short note that he was in and a few moments later the blonde wizard stood before him.

"Potter, listen to me, this is a fine restaurant. Through my connections, I've managed to score a table at nine. You show me your dress robes, the one you think are appropriate and then I'll take you to my tailor to get you something you could actually wear."

"Stop it, Malfoy. Why are you doing this?"

"I'm not buying you a new set of robes. I'm only making sure you buy something proper."

"Fine, but why do I have to go to such an expensive restaurant?" the war-hero asked.

"Because my father said I could invite you to dinner and I need to make sure you don't embarrass yourself if I don't want my stepmother to hex us both."

"What?! Are you saying you take me to the most exclusive place in England so I can practice for dinner at your place? Don't people usually practice at home so they look good when going out?"

"Your wrong. It's the most exclusive restaurant in the entire United Kingdom and Ireland combined."

Harry exhaled loudly and bought the robes Draco had picked out. As much as he hated to admit it, the git got style. Must be a Malfoy-thing. Even Hermione who still looked very much herself was much better dressed. Looking their most stunning yet elegant the two wizards entered the venue. A waiter led them to a secluded area where a table decorated with countless red roses awaited them.

"You can't be serious, Malfoy!"

"What? Haven't I mentioned that this place was popular among wizards for popping the question?"

"Great. Wait. I need to make a reservation for my cousin, he wants to propose to Cho on their 18-month-anniversary."

"Sure, I'll wait here."

When Harry returned to their table the young wizard immediately realized why he never went to restaurants like this. Not only was his favorite food Molly's homecooked meals but he was also overwhelmed with the sheer amount of knives and forks on the table. They hadn't even served the first of the 13 courses and all he wanted to do was apparate away.

"It's obvious, Potter. You use the outer cutlery first and eat your way in."

"How's that obvious?!" the raven-haired wizard snapped back.

"It would look bad if there were the middle knives missing and the others remained on the table."

If Hermione had said those very words the young war-hero would have probably agreed but this was Malfoy here and he would rather jew his own arm off then get his point. It was a long and tedious affair. A couple of courses in they were served a plate of rather bis mollusks.

"It feels like we're back in our second year," Harry started, "eat slugs."

"You do realize that there's a difference between snails and slugs."

"You can't tell me that wizards actually at that stuff!"

"Where is your famed Gryffindor courage now? Don't tell me you are afraid of trying new foods. How did you get around the world? By McDonald's? Don't give me that look, I live with a muggle-born. And by the way, muggle eat snails as well, Hermione told me, she also had no problems with the eating-method either," the Malfoy heir said handing the wizard some kind of torture-device only purebloods would be familiar with.

"It's a snail fork. Better learn how to use it, my stepmother loves mollusks in all shapes and sizes and my sister likes to collect snails and earthworms on rainy days."

Harry gaged. What had he done wrong in his life to deserve this? The wizard was absolutely sure that his former classmate was playing some sick joke on him but when he saw Malfoy devour the slimy creature, he had to try one as well. No way he would let the Slytherin win, especially not as a Gryffindor. Well, it tasted interesting.

Harry tried many new dishes that evening most of which he couldn't even fathom to pronounce their names half properly, but it didn't taste bad. The fine Franch cuisine was, of course, no match for Molly's cooking.

After studying the law for so many hours Harry found it hard to memorizes all the rules he just heard.

"Don't tell me you actually have to learn the laws before enforcing them," Draco replied sarcastically.

At the end of an endless seeming evening of using the right cutlery and holding your glass properly while sitting elegantly, the blonde wizard apparated his school-nemesis, the one who always beat him at Quidditch to the Burrow.

Standing in front of the door the unlikely pair agreed to see the match against the Chudley Canons on Saturday together. They said bye and Harry entered the Burrow to find the Weasley-clan smiling at him. Somehow, they must have been eavesdropping. Knowing George that was more than likely.


	16. Teddy for Teddy

**Teddy for Teddy**

After a long day of studying the law, Harry decided to follow Hermione's advice and visited Andromeda and his godson Ted. He was nervous because he just realized that he never actually met the boy. He must be six or seven by now. The young wizard was relieved that the stuffed bear was enormous since he felt guilty for his absence.

How he missed fighting monsters and evil wizards. In hindsight, it was so much easier than those awkward conversations with his loved ones. Before returning, he never really realized just how many people cared about him. Sure they all supported him in his fight against Voldemort but that was for the greater good, wasn't it?

The witch Harry only knew as the lovely lady who gave birth to the quirky Tonks opened the door. She looked stunning. Harry was completely speechless and mustered the lady in detail. He certainly now saw the famed Black'she beauty. She had a very womanly body pressed into a tight corset and a long pencil skirt. Her displayed breasts seemed to jump right into the young wizard's face. Looking at her astounding assets Harry totally forgot why he was here.

"Harry? I worried you would never show."

"Forgive me, Mrs. Tonks, I, I, I...," he stuttered.

"For some reason, I doubt that I am the one who's forgiveness you seek. I understand you are dreaming of becoming an Auror just like my daughter... if you hurt my little Teddy unfortunate things might happen considering I'm rather close to Kingsley."

Harry swallowed hard. Did she just threaten him elegantly? The lady truly was a Slytherin.

"I've got him a present... I know I've screwed up but I promise I'll make up for it. I want to be a good godfather for Teddy at least as good as Sirus was to me."

"You might want to set yourself higher goals than that," the cousin of Harry's late godfather stated "leading him inside.

"Teddy! I want you to introduce you to your uncle Harry, you know the one who always sent you presents."

Harry looked more confused than ever. He hadn't sent a present or a letter to anyone... suddenly the war-hero was reminded of his own lonely childhood, teddy was an orphan just like him. And just like him, he needed someone in his life. And he failed the boy. He failed his father's friend by not looking after the boy like he promised to and there was no going back. He lost 5 long years on the run and now he was struggling to make up for all the time lost.

"Stop living in the past, Harry. What's done is done. It's not like he'll remember much of his early childhood in the long run," the older witch stated, "And do not tell my grandson the truth about the gifts he received. I won't allow his heart to be broken. It simply looked bad if he only got birthday presents from me... I hope this will change from now on."

Harry simply nodded and handed Teddy the teddy. The boy was thrilled to receive a present and showed Harry his room. After about an hour of playing Andromeda asked Harry to have an eye on her grandson as she rushed to the door. She checked her hair in the mirror and reapplied her lipstick.

A teenager entered the house. He hugged the older witch and placed a lingering kiss on her cheek.

"Harry this is Marc. He's my boyfriend, well, at least for the summer. After that, he'll return to Hogwarts."

Did she just say, boyfriend?! Harry was about to ask. Surely the lady didn't keep a boy for the summer when the younger wizard recognized him.

"You are Harry Potter! I can't believe I got the chance to meet you. I'm a big fan of you. This is the best summer ever. I mean, I'm meeting the Harry Potter."

Andromeda raised a brow.

"I mean, because of you, of course," the younger wizard answered.

"Well, since Harry decided to play a more important role in my grandson's life... Why don't you take Teddy out so we could enjoy some private time..." the older witch suggested.

The war-hero felt his face redden, he never wanted to know about anybody's sex life so why is everybody telling him? Harry grabbed Ted by the arm and dragged him outside.

"Thank you, Harry, I really appreciate it. I just don't want Teddy to get attached to my boyfriends, they never last... After my husband died I thought I would never in my life touch another wizard but the menopause changed things. I always feel so horny... it's hard to find someone who can keep up with me and usually those boys get bored after a while-"

Harry cut the witch short. Yes, she was attractive and she could easily make a young wizard's mouth water. But he couldn't wrap his head around the fact that she actually sleeps with a 17-year-old boy.

"-Thanks, I really appreciate what you've done for me, Madam Tonks. I was wondering if I could take Teddy to Malfoy Manor on Sunday if he wanted to go..."

"Sure, he adores Rose, even though she always beats him in all the games that don't require motoric abilities."


	17. Picking up Rose

**Picking up Rose**

Lucius had just returned from Greece. He grabbed a snack the way from track 4 2/3 to his in-law's surgery. He may have never had the doubtable pleasure of muggle dental-health-care but the strange smell of industrial alcohol and the drilling sounds which reminded him of the humming of the three-horned pink wasps he encountered as a young boy made, made him quite uneasy.

He walked up to the new chubby receptionist and asked to see Dr. Granger. She told him to take a seat in the waiting room. The dark wizard had just arrived and was already frustrated. He grinned showing his perfectly-shaped white teeth. "Do I look like I am here to have my fillings done?"

"Well, maybe you're here for the bleaching?" she asked quietly.

"I am here to speak to Dr. Granger. It is private."

The women ran to treatment room 2. Lucius entered the room unauthorized. The dentist was cleaning his patient's teeth when he spotted the tall wizard.

"Lucius, I wasn't expecting you, you see, Helena told me I was visited by a friend."

"You could always hire qualified personal to avoid mistakes," the wizard replied studying the doctor's work by shamelessly peeking into the patient's mouth. The patient felt clearly uncomfortable under the strange man's scrutinizing gaze but was unable to protest with his chaws being held in place.

"I've been reading the news, shockingly there were no reports of brutal murders or other hate-crimes. Are you losing your lust for gore in your old days?"

"Quite the opposite, I am just more careful about covering my tracks," Lucius replied.

"I thought so," Dr. Granger said while continuing to work on his now terrified patient.

"I have got something for you. Considering your unique wedding present, I was under the impression you were into those things…" the wizard said handing him a book titled 101 lethal sex-accidents.

The older Malfoy had to agree, Karma was indeed a bitch. Why was fate so cruel and have him end up with the very muggle he weaponized to get a rise out of Arthur all those years ago as in-laws? Well, truthfully it wasn't one of his finest moments in life but a man has to bring sacrifices when the occasion calls.

It wasn't just the incident at the book-store, the two men generally disliked each other. Dr. Granger hated the dark wizard for defiling his, at least in his mind, innocent little daughter. He wanted to strangulate the arrogant wizard for it. The dentist tried everything from talking sense into his girl to gifting the Malfoy patriarch with a thick illustrated book listing all known STDs. The muggle regarded it as a rather thoughtful wedding present.

Unfortunately, all his efforts were in vain since the perverted bastard ignored his advice. The Death Eater impregnated his cute little girl, a mere child who attended school with his son. There was simply nothing the wizard could do to establish a good relationship with the dentist his age even if he wanted to.

Whether he was a Nazi or a bunny-breeder would not change the fact that this monster fucked his little Hermione and got her with child, twice. Although, thinking about it breeding bunnies sounded exactly like something a cliche pedophile would do.

"About the book, I was merely concerned about your health but your being here proofs your ignoring my massage," the dentist said to his son-in-law.

"I understand your point very clearly but you have to understand, I only use condoms for my rape-victims."

The patient chained to the chair turned pale. Being unable to move or speak in a dental-surgery was scary but that intimidating friend of his doctor was terrifying. He was looking for the hidden camera, maybe his colleagues were playing a joke on him.

"I was under the impression that you have something that belongs to me," the wizard stated.

"-with my wife."

"Then I shall wait for the more competent Dr. Granger."

"Before you leave, my mother is celebrating her 80th birthday next week. I expect to see you then."

"Am I correct in assuming this is non-negotiable…" Lucius took a deep breath. "Do I have to bring my son and grandson as well?"

"So you Nazis can exclude yourself? You have to stand through this family gathering all by yourself, Lucius."

"Fine, but I cannot give you any guarantees with Hermione that far along."

The dark wizard walked back to the reception area and inquired the whereabouts of Dr. Granger.

"Didn't you just? Oh, you mean the other Dr. Granger she is currently out with her granddaughter. She must be back at any moment."

"I am aware of that."

"Oh, now I get it you're here for Rose. You must be her other grandfather."

"I am her father," the wizard said sternly.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't know that," the nice receptionist apologized.

"Obviously."

When Rose returned to the surgery with her grandmother she immediately ran to her father and told him unfiltered everything she experienced. She explained all the electrical devices to the aristocratic wizard in a fashion reminding him strongly of his wife when they first met all those years ago when she was still a child.

The two disappeared and a very upset patient grunted into Dr. Granger's ear.

"Who he was? Lucius Malfoy, the one who defiled my little daughter… No, don't worry, he doesn't actually kill people my girl made him promise that when they married."


	18. Sibling Bonding

**Sibling bonding**

Ron had a terrible nightmare. Hermione came by showing him a huge diamond ring, telling him she was now a Malfoy because they were the only ones who can satisfy her needs. Terrified the red-haired wizard jumped out of his bed and crashed onto the hard wooden floor.

As if he wasn't already in enough pain, a baby started to cry. He tried to ignore it hoping somebody else would take care of this problem, yet nobody did. After a couple of minutes, he gave up and rushed to Percy's old room.

The black boy was screaming his lungs out. Not knowing what to do he tried to talk some sense into his nephew. It didn't work. Where was everybody? When he lifted the baby up, Scorpius started screaming as well. Great. Now he was alone with two crying babies.

Ron searched the house, there must be someone home but he only found the families ghoul. Turns out that old creature was no help with small children either. Scorpius and the boy who's names the young wizard did not know, were troublesome.

Why did they all abandon him and more importantly where was his sister? Nothing he did seem to work. He looked at the clock. His dad was at work and so was George. Ginny and Mom were just out, nothing more specific.

It was already a quarter to twelve when the youngest Weasley returned.

"Where have you been for the last two hours?!" Ron demanded to know.

"I've been out running and exercising like I always do, not that it is any of your business."

"And what about Mom and your children?"

"Shh, Mom is probably at the market and my little ones are sleeping. I'm going to wake them after I've prepared lunch for us, like always. Why?"

"You can't just abandon your own children!"

Ginny slapped him. "I didn't abandon my children! I only went out for a bit, they're sleeping anyway and if something happened you would have been there!" she screamed back at her youngest older brother.

"Your little monsters have been crying for hours. I couldn't get any sleep even though I specifically asked you to let me sleep in."

"Please tell me you haven't silenced my babies."

"They are really loud," Ron defended himself.

"It's not their fault! It's their only way of communicating, they cry because they need something." Ginny rushed upstairs to check on her sons. It was unusual for them to cry so much. Maybe they were teething or worse sick. The young witch preyed that there was nothing wrong with her little ones. She was about to floo to St. Mungo's when her brother stopped her reluctantly admitting to having accidentally woken them up and having been unable to settle them.

Ginny sighed in relief. Still holding young Mr. Zabini in her arms she wanted to hand Scorpius over to Ron so she could cook something.

"Bad widad," the still youngest Malfoy protested.

"Why does my son call you a bad wizard?" she asked.

"Blimey, I can explain it, Ginny. I swear."

"I'm all ear."

"I, I, I got a little upset when I saw Mione with the Malfoys," he answered.

"Ronald Bilius Weasley, how could you?! She was your friend and Scorpius is your nephew. You ought to get used to this. You can't just abandon your family, your own flesh and blood and expect us to pause our lives waiting for you. How dare you insult us when you were the one who screwed up!"

"Why are you only angry with me?! Harry left you just as well."

"Because Harry is gay. There is nothing he or I could do about it. It's not his fault. You know muggle shame men who sleep with other men because they are unclean. They're not allowed to donate blood or adopt children. There is this disease HIV or something. That's why it is so hard for him to accept his preferences. I don't understand why he#s into Draco though..."

Ron looked at his sister with a question mark written all over his face. "Hugh? You found him hot enough to have his baby," Ron said.

"Well, it wasn't like that, Blaise invited me to join. It was fun and exciting. We often sleep together and sometimes with a third wizard. Turns out all three of us forgot to cast a contraception spell or thought that someone else already did it and I had those lovely babies," the younger witch explained.

"Urgh, that's disgusting. How come our parents didn't disinherit you?"

"I guess after you left, George and Pansy had a baby and Hermione married Lucius Malfoy, they simply didn't think I could top that," Ginny said proudly.

Ron looked at his sister wondering if she was serious about her last statement or not.

Later that day when Harry returned from work his best friend dragged him into their room. "I hope things between you and Malfoy work out because if you break my sister's heart, I'm gonna break you."

"What?"

"She knows about your gayness. If I ever again see you with a witch..." the red-haired wizard threatened his best friend.


	19. LEGO

**LEGO**

With his robes draped over his arm and the wand tucked away, Lucius Malfoy fitted in well with the muggles, at least as well as any gentleman in a meticulous three-piece-suit would in a toy-store. He hated the venue with all the children crying but Rose had the former Death Eater firmly wrapped around her little fingers.

There was one particularly annoying child that ran circles around him, so he swiftly stuck out his cane in the girl's path and watched her with satisfaction crash onto the hard floor. The young muggle seemed to get his point and ran off to another part of the store. Pleased with himself he looked at the plastic goods. Did muggle actually enjoy things like that?

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of his little girl crying. He could distinguish her from a million other babies. Rushing to her the people did their best to get out of his way. The Malfoy-patriarch had not lost his touch after all. He found Rose in the LEGO-corner holding a box shaped like a 4x2 brick almost as big as her.

"I wanna have it but it says four minus nine nine and I'm only three," the little one sobbed.

Lucius looked at the package and with a tip of his wand, the 4 turned into a 3.

"You are going to be a big sister soon. This comes with new responsibilities like not swallowing your toys and going to the bathroom in time. Since you have learned the numbers so well you are allowed a treat but remember not to let your great aunt Seraphine play with those, she is turning 103 next winter."

Rose giggled and her father retrieved a few 100-Pound bills from his sterling silver money-clip and paid for the LEGO.

The two Malfoys came home with two full yellow shopping bags. Hermione who had been waiting for them to return hugged them both before eyeing the suspicious-looking shopping bags. "What did you get? Somehow, I have the weird feeling that I shouldn't have given you access to my credit card."

"I paid cash."

Hermione looked at her husband with a raised brow. The former Death Eater pulled a huge box out of the bag. In it was a 6x6 All Terrain Tow Truck by LEGO Technic aimed at 12-16 years old.

"What's the damage?"

"Two to three-hundred-pound, around that corner. Rose wanted it," the dark wizard insisted.

Hermione raised a brow and Rose pulled the big plastic box filled with the colorful LEGO bricks out of the other bag. It looked a lot more like something a three-year-old wanted.

The Gryffindor left the parlor for the library to continue her research while Rose emptied the box with all those little plastic pieces onto the fine centuries-old Persian rug and started to play. Lucius headed to his office a couple of rooms down the floor leaving the door open so he could hear what his girl was doing.

He was rather productive that afternoon. There was something soothing about the sound of grubbing through a huge pile of LEGO. Every half hour or so, Rose would drop by to show him her newest creation. Before he knew it his desk looked more like it belonged into a playroom rather than the office of a powerful business-tycoon.

The only trouble was that not all of the girl's art-works were stable enough to survive the transport. Some broke apart as soon as she tried to lift them up. The dark wizard had at those moments a hard time resisting the urge of casting a silencing-charm knowing his wife would not approve.

Before supper, Hermione made Rose tidy the mess she made up, by hand. It was everything but efficient. A task that would normally take nothing more than a simple wand-movement took almost an hour and watching them from the doorway he could easily spot bricks still lying beneath the couch.

No one was more excited for dinner to end than Lucius, not that he would ever admit it. He finally got to play with his newest toy. Lucius and Rose spread the pieces all over the floor and Hermione sat on the sofa reading a book. She would have loved to join them on the floor but in her current state, she wouldn't have been able to get back up again. Also, she lacked a desire for LEGO sticking up her butt. God, had she just really thought that? She was spending too much time with Draco.

Rose was eager to help her father sort the pieces so that construction would be quicker, hopefully within a timeframe that agreed with her sleeping hours. Unfortunately for the dark wizard she opened all the plastic bags and pilled the content up. Finding anything now would be hard.

While watching him build the vehicle, Rose decided to join her mother on the couch. She leaned sideways on her mother's belly. She was startled a couple of times by her unborn sibling's sudden movements before she eventually fell asleep in her mother's arm.

Hermione took a look around. Her beautiful husband was focused on his new toy, their daughter slept soundly and she had a good book in her hand. It was one of those blissful moments that reminded the young war-heroine just how lucky she was that things turned out the way they did.


	20. Of Dentists and Wizards

**Of Dentists and Wizards**

Arthur Weasley and Dr. Granger took the tube to the city center. The dentist needed a new microwave and knew the befriended wizard would love to accompany him. Arthur studied the muggles passing by closely, they fascinated him but decades of working in the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office thaught him very little about those strange people.

Dr. Granger on the other side felt a little embarrassed by the wizard. While he did genuinely like him, he felt more comfortable seeing him in his house and not in public. Arthur was a nice man but he lacked refinement and proper behavior. He always spoke his mind never thinking it through in advance.

"How come that none of your sons married my daughter?"

"She is still like a daughter to me, although I'm a little disappointed about her not being a Weasley. My oldest married a french Veela and Charlie is more interested in dragons than in witches-"

"- women, he meant women," Dr. Granger told the other passengers on the tube who were looking at them weirdly.

"And Percy, I don't even think I know him anymore. George had a baby with Ms. Parkinson and Ron, well, I think he was too young to appreciate her the way she deserved. He won't make the same mistake again," the wizard listed his sons.

The muggle was boiling inside. How dare he defend that stupid boy who broke his daughter's heart. It was his fault that he now had an old nazi as a son-in-law. Instead of bursting out in public he bit his lip. People were already staring and he knew that a parent would defend his child no matter what, but...

"Hermione is the step-grandmother of one of my grandsons, so technically she is still family after all," Arthur said.

The other passengers found them entertaining and listened closely interested in their family situation.

"I don't know how you can see Lucius without punching his face," the dentist stated.

"Well, after that incident at Flourish and Bott's, you remember, I had to promise Molly to behave better, at least in front of the children. But it's hard," the wizard admitted. He wasn't a violent person not by a long shot but the wealthy aristocrat just had a way of getting under his skin.

"I broke his nose the day Hermione announced their engagement."

The usually kind and understanding wizard smiled. Arthur would have loved to have seen that. "And you're still alive?"

"I think that was my daughter's doing."

The two unlikely friends entered an electrical retailer. Like a child, Arthur started to press all buttons and was amazed whenever something happened. Embarrassed the dentist dragged the wizard to a remote area of the store. People were yet again staring at them. While this part of the store was indeed less crowded it was unfortunately equipped with a PlayStation and somehow the two grown men found themselves playing FIFA.

Arthur was in heaven. Not only was there and an electronic device but he also got to know about a muggle sport. Soccer wasn't Quidditch but it was still fascinating. There were so many positions and more players but only one ball. The wizard liked the keeper best since his job was the easiest to understand.

Since neither of them had prior experience with playing videogames they were evenly matched. While the wizard had better eyesight the dentist knew how to handle electronic stuff in general. They played for a while until the TV exploded. Naturally, a salesman saw what happened.

"You destroyed it, so you have to pay for it," he insisted.

Arthur was quick to apologize. He didn't mean to do it but this muggle-marvel was rather sensitive and he might have gotten a little too excited and emotional. Trying to explain himself without violating the statue of secrecy proved challenging.

"Your TV just exploded! It could have killed us! You're lucky if I don't contact my lawyer," the dentist cried.

The salesman apologized, gave them the microwave for free and handed them generous gift coupons. The muggle had the weird feeling that the wizard was happier about those then he was even though he could actually use them.

"Next time I'll just take you to a pub to watch soccer and drink a few pines."

"There will be a next time?" Arthur asked unsure after the mess he just made.

"Sure, you're my daughter's step-grandson's grandfather. We're basically family."


	21. Advisory Board to Minister Shacklebolt

**The Advisory Board to Minister Shacklebolt**

Hermione was tired. When they decided to have another child it seemed manageable. Work was going well, babies quickly grow up, soon Rose would start to get tutored and Draco was there to help out. Now it all seemed too much.

The emotional turmoil from Harry and Ron reentering her life, Draco refusing to take on more responsibility and the additional workload from Blaise's reckless behavior all added weight on Hermione's shoulders. She was hormonal and worn down, caring what felt like a giant's baby inside and while she thought that Lucius was right in telling her not to stress herself out with all those rather less than more useful guides for young parents, Hermione felt awfully unprepared not having read anything in advance even though this was her second child already.

Another long meeting discussing Zabini's case with the Advisory Board to Minister Shacklebolt, which both she and her husband were part of awaited her. The 13 witches and wizards gathered around a circular table. Since Draco was still hungover from last night's party the elder Malfoy brought his daughter to the meeting. The couple was sure that no matter how long this discussion would take, they would still return long before the young blond awoke to find his family missing.

Lucius placed Rose on his lap and handed her one of the 5-pence ball-pens he stole from the labor parties campaign to keep her occupied. Hermione got up holding her notes tightly. Even though she was well prepared and had given many presentations to the very people present before she was still nervous.

She took a deep breath and looked at her audience. 'Talk to the committee just like you would explain it to Rose, then everyone can follow you,' Lucius had said. This was a lot easier since their daughter was actually present. The only problem was that she never actually understood the content of her presentation.

The little girl had listened to it many times when Hermione practiced. The complexity of hereditary transmission overwhelmed her and she fell asleep, luckily without tamper tantrum. Surprisingly the mini Malfoy did extraordinarily well with quantum physics but that was probably because she was a baby and not despite it.

Frankly, Hermione didn't even understand what this fuss was all about. Yes, she was desperate to know where magic comes from and how it's inherited. But that was for the sake of knowledge and understanding how she came to be and why she had to endure so much pain and hardship. The young witch strongly opposed using genetics to decide who gets custody over a child. This was something parents should negotiate between themselves and wasn't the little one's well being the number one priority?

Not that it mattered anyway. The war-heroine lobbied for better inclusion of squibs and muggle-raised children into society and she wasn't going to stop that fight anytime soon. Advances have been made in the last years and she was sure that in the eleven years until her former classmate's child would or would not start Hogwarts a lot more can be achieved.

"... to summon it up, it is very likely that magic is a dominant trade. Factoring in that there are people like me without a magical parent, it has to be caused by at least two different genes. Furthermore taking the Hardy-Weinberg-equilibrium into consideration, those specific Alleles or at least one of them must be extremely rare. That means in our specific case that Ms. Miller who has no known magical relatives will not carry and therefore possibly pass on neither of the Alleles. But since Mr. Zabini is a documented pureblood with no squibs in his direct line it would be extremely unlikely for him to have a non-magical child."

"Are you saying that the baby is a little witch or wizard."

"If Mrs. Zabini was honest about Blaise's family tree, that would be the case, Seamus Finnegan, Tom Riddle, and Severus Snape are examples of the same constellation of pureblood and muggle."

"But all of their mothers were witches..."

"There is also Hagrid who inherited his magical abilities from his father and not his giant mother. Also, there was a boom of muggle-borns in the late 20s correlating with the first world war. Since the numbers are usually stable and considering the desperate situation many muggles were in, it is plausible to assume that many of those muggle-raised children were actually fathered by wizards. Otherwise, a sudden rise in usually consistent numbers could not be explained. I am confident in my research abilities, I've done the math, feel free to check my numbers and after analyzing centuries of birth records I now know that milkman's children are more common than I ever thought, thank you for your attention."


	22. Watching Quidditch

**Watching Quidditch**

Harry and Ron somehow ended up watching Ginny's match at the stadium with Blaise and Draco. They haven't even departed when the first argument started. Why did they have to go to Malfoy Manor if the two Slytherins could apparate to the Burrow just as well?

Their first challenge of the day was getting the boys ready which proved to be hard since Ron wasn't particularly popular with his nephews and neither of the war-heroes knew young Mr. Zabini's name. Harry quickly gained some sort of understanding with Scorpius which made dressing and feeding him much easier. He should have done it in a different order though. Ron complained about his sister who could have done the task before she went to training, about Zabini who couldn't raise his child properly and cursed every Malfoy for daring to exist.

"Ron, hurry up, we're already late."

"Shut up, mate. You got the easy child."

"Do you want to switch?" Harry asked.

"Nooo!" Scorpius protested hitting Harry with his little fist.

"Then be nice to your uncle Harry," the raven-haired wizard said to him in response.

15 minutes later the two wizards arrived in the grand entrance hall of Malfoy Manor through the fireplace and handed the little ones over to their fathers.

"What took you so long?" Draco demanded to know.

"It's nice to see you as well," Harry said.

Rose stood up from a child-sized stool wearing a pretty blush-blue dress adorned with little bows and silver pins in her golden hair. Harry couldn't believe that the little angel was Hermione's daughter since she looked nothing like her mother.

"Who is that?" Ron asked.

"My sister, Rose," Malfoy said in a tone that was intended to humiliate the Weasley.

"I thought we were going to a Quidditch-match," the red-haired defended himself.

"Well, as you can see, father dressed her," Draco said.

Rose had a wide grin all over her face.

"Is she coming?"

"I am," the girl insisted in a way that was 100% Hermione. She didn't like it when people talked about her instead of with her, after all, she was a big girl and could very much talk for herself.

Another five minutes later the odd group settled in their private box at the stadium.

"Why did you bring Rose? Without her, it would have been a bunch of wizards doing guy's stuff. Now we have to behave in front of the lady," Blaise complained.

"If you don't want me I can go away," Rose protested running towards the exit.

"Stop Rose, you know Zabini, he adores you, he was just joking," Draco said dragging his sister back to their seats. Blaise nodded following his friend's nonverbal command.

The blond wizard hardly left the house and already regretted offering to babysit. Even though no one would ever believe him he found his father's 'little Angel' very troublesome. She didn't respect him as an adult and constantly questions her brother's authority.

But she was cute and clever and everybody's darling, ideal for showing off. Also, neither his stepmother nor his father would babysit Scorpius if he didn't return the favor once in a while.

When the match began all of them looked for Ginny.

"I found mommy!" Scorpius shouted excited.

"This may sound odd, but what's your son's name?" Harry asked the dark-skinned wizard.

"Casanova."

The two war-heroes laughed. "You're joking, right?"

"No, I'm serious. Casanova Zabini will follow me into my footsteps. He always stares ladies at their breasts," Zabini said proudly.

"Yeah, because he thinks there is milk for him. I bet he ends up in a monogamous marriage eventually," Darco commented, opening the picnic-basked his elves prepared.

"My son may end up in Gryffindor, I can live with that, but he'll definitely be a womanizer," the young father insisted.

Meanwhile, Draco lifted a glass-container filled with paprika from the basket. On it was a note: 'It's not green – HM'

"Who's HM?"

"Hermione Malfoy."

That answer made the war-heroes' faces turn bright red. In their minds, it was unimaginable what Lucius Malfoy, Voldemort's right-hand-man did to their friend to claim her. It must have been an unforgivable or something similarly cruel.

Draco's watching over Rose so they could have time to themselves brought even more although differently disturbing images to their minds.

"I don't think they could do anything, just look at Hermione, she's huge, probably 200 pounds or more," Draco said as if he could read their minds.

Ron blushed even more if that was possible. "I don't think her size or weight would be a problem..."

"Even if it was anatomically doable. Do you know how boring they are? They'll probably just spent the day working and reading."


	23. Teammates

**Teammates**

Ginny was out of breath. Sweat was running down her face. She just landed, her hands clung on her racing-broom. The coach was yelling at her but she couldn't hear a sound. She focused on breathing the Quidditch match was already a distant memory. She had no idea whether they won or lost, whether she played well or missed the rings at every shot. The young witch was pulled out of her trail of thought by her muscles starting to twitch. It was too hard to remain standing and she dropped her broom.

"Ginny, what the hell where you thinking?! You're blocked for the next two matches! Why did you have to smash the Cannons'keeper through the ring as well?! The Quaffle alone would have done the trick!" her coach yelled at her.

"What? I, I, it was an accident," the young witch said absently.

"Twice in a row?! I need you focused especially now that Jenny isn't in form. Think about your team and don't bring your problems to the pitch! Do you understand me?"

"Yes, coach. It won't happen again," the witch answered.

Ginny joined her team in the shower.

"Are you alright, Ginny?"

"She's probably still upset that Draco stole her boyfriend," a dark-haired witch replied. "Maybe it is really you who can't satisfy a wizard and not the other way around, considering how many of your boyfriends turn out gay."

"Stop being mean to her, Jenny. You're only pissed because you can't make a goal," a short witch defended Ginny and handed her friend a towel.

"You don't think she would play extra bed just to make me look even worse," Ginny asked her friend. She sounded worried.

"No one would ever sign her again if she sabotages her own team..."

"I've heard she's seeing the Bally Castle Bats' beater," the third chaser of the team added to the conversation.

"I don't think it's true, the Prophet prints so much bullshit," Ginny commented.

"I have to go go," the short witch said walking towards an older wizard.

"Aren't you embarrassed to let your father pick you up?" Jenny asked spitefully.

"Well, he's not my father, he's my boyfriend," she replied.

"I thought you didn't need a wizard to care for you."

"I don't, but I need one to cook for me."

The wizard looked confused his expression demanded answers from the younger witch.

"Sorry, uncle, but she keeps messing with us, and the less she knows about me the better. What's for dinner?"

The young Weasley waved her friend bye. Seeing the confused look on her rivals face made her laugh.

Ginny was glad that her boys were with their fathers so she could at least have a moment to herself. She sat on the sofa in the living room and stared out of the window for a while. No, she did not want to get up or talk to someone. She just wanted to sit there and pity herself.

She fought just as hard as the boys did but only ever received attention and appreciation for being Potter's (ex-) girlfriend. No one cared about how hard it was to be the resistance to your Death Eater teachers and how hard it was to protect the younger students and how severely she was punished for doing so.

She ought to get ready. She didn't want to. Ginny really didn't feel like going out and celebrating. Tonight it would be particularly hard not to hex Jenny. She couldn't stay away either. She was part of the team so she had to behave like one. Ginny had already missed enough of their victory-celebrations to feel awkward about staying away. She had little ones who needed her, but for some reason, her male colleagues didn't feel as torn about it as she did. Their wives and mothers didn't seem to be too bothered either.

Somehow she must have managed to get up and attend the party, but everything afterward was a little blurry. Ginny woke up with a huge hangover on a stranger's couch. It was hard to stand up and looking at the mirror she realized that her face was decorated with penises. Teammates, she thought rolling her eyes. Embarrassed she grabbed her wand and apparated home.


	24. After the Match

**After the Match**

After the game ended the young wizards contemplated checking on Ginny. It wasn´t like her to be so ruthless. Harry felt guilty for upsetting her and Ron was upset with the current situation. He spent his childhood fighting Slytherins and now they were supposed to be friends, just like that, without even so much as an apology for all the hardship he went thru. The fact that Blaise and Draco were actually fun to be with made the young Weasley hate them even more.

While the four adults were busy dealing with their new situation, Rose ran off. None of them noticed her missing until Draco started to panic.

"She can´t have gone far, I´m sure she´ll turn up in no time."

"You don´t understand. she´s a Malfoy and we´re not exactly popular. We don't talk about it when the kids are present but we do receive a lot of hate mail and death threats. What if somebody took her to get back at father or me, or Hermione."

Now Harry understood the danger Rose was potentially in. The girl might not know it but she was the daughter of one of the most hated death eater and the fact that he somehow managed to evade prison twice didn´t help either. Thinking about all the families who have lost someone to the war the Auror-to-be saw a sheer endless list of suspects.

"Why would anybody want to hurt Hermione?" Ron asked.

"You of all people should understand it," Blaise explained while Draco called for his sister. "Just think of your own reaction when you heard about her marriage and you were her friend."

"But I would never hurt a child! It surely was a Slytherin keeping the bloodline pure!" the red-haired insisted refusing to believe that people who killed and fought alongside with him could have done something bad. They were the good guys after all.

Blaise rolled his eyes trying to be not to offended by the Gryffindor´s ignorance. The Weasel just ran away because he couldn´t handle it. He didn´t know what his mother and he had to go through just for being pureblood and Slytherin.

They found Rose within minutes of searching outside the stadium. She had fun jumping in every puddle she found on the muddy ground. Dirt splashed high enough to get even her hair wet and dirty. Her white lace socks turned brown from the mud and her dress looked beyond rescuable.

Draco screamed at her for almost giving him a heart attack. Didn´t she know what could have happened to her? After a moment relief washed over him. She was alright and that was all that mattered. As soon as the initial relief passed Draco started to get desperate again. He couldn´t bring his father´s little princess home looking like that.

"Rose! You can´t just run away! And what do you look like?! How am I supposed to clean you up?!"

"With magic," she answered smiling broadly.

This posed a challenge since none of the wizards were proficient at performing domestic spells. It wasn´t on Hogwart´s curriculum they justified themselves. Malfoy and Zabini grew up with elves catering to their every need, Harry grew up with muggle and Ron´s mom was a housewife.  
They stared at each other hoping someone else would come up with something. The children found it much to everyone´s annoyance entertaining.

"Andromeda," Harry suggested. "Tonks once mentioned she was good at it."

"Nice call, My aunt adores her."

Five minutes later the parts found themselves in Andromeda´s living room slurping coffee. The older witch cleaned her up in no time. Rose and Teddy went playing when Harry had an idea. Since Andromeda found a sleepover at Malfoy Manor a good idea because she had no desire to socialize with her former brother in law, he sent Ron to go pick his invisibility cloak up and sneak back so they could use this opportunity to have a look around and check if Hermione was really treated well there. Also, he bought the girl a new LEGO set and hoped that this and spending more time with her would make her like him.

The raven-haired wizard kicked his friend under the table. Ron rose.

"I think, I have to go home now. I, I, I have... things to do," the wizard said before disapparating.

"That was wired."

"Well, he, em, he is seeing someone," Harry deflected.

"You´re silly, it´s just sex. Why are you Gryffindors so wired about it?" the dark-skinned wizard asked.

Time moved by and Ron was yet to return. Harry grew anxious.

"I think we should go, thank you, aunty, for having us."

"Wait, we cant go... I, I want another cup of coffee."

"Really, Harry?" Draco asked when the war-hero noticed from the corner of his eyes the flames turn green. "No, I think we should go."


	25. Back to Malfoy Manor

**Back at Malfoy Manor**

Waiting for a good moment Harry finally managed to catch Rose all by herself. The girl stared at him determined not to give in.

"Hi, Rose. I've got something for you," Harry said, handing her a present.

The little witch seemed unsure as to how to proceed and hesitated until Hermione appeared behind her. She placed her hand on her daughter's shoulder. "It's OK."

She accepted the present. "Thank you."

"You may open it now."

That sentence made the girl smile and her tiny hands quickly tore the paper off and she spilled the content all over the floor. Rose studied the plan in silence.

"You could always ask Harry, he would love to help you," Hermione suggested but to Harry's disappointment, Rose didn't rise to the bait.

Hermione used the time to show her best friend a few photographs. She started with a picture taken on her graduation day. Harry found a proud looking Mr. Malfoy next to his son and Hermione. She looked happy next to the former Death Eater yet the thought of them still made him cringe.

Hermione blushed thinking of that evening. "We weren't together yet back then. It took me quite a while to allow someone in..."

Harry nodded swallowing a huge lump in his throat. He looked at the other pictures realizing he should have been there.

After some time Rose, however, decided that she actually needed help and reluctantly asked the strange wizard. The war-hero eagerly joined her on the floor. This made him happier then he would ever like to admit. Sitting next to the girl with his meager experience with children he felt a little lost. He was afraid of doing something wrong and destroying the little trust they built.

After the first ten minutes of piecing together little plastic pieces together, it was almost as if the girl forgot that she didn't like the raven-haired wizard. She looked at the little gears working together with awe. To her mechanics were more magical than magic ever could be. She had the same look on her face Harry had when he first saw Hagrid with his pink umbrella hexing his cousin.

In no time the two were a good team and construction progressed quickly. It would have all been well hadn't Rose commented on him being almost as good as her father. The young war-hero almost choked to death. It was a new world. He never thought that the biggest compliment he could ever receive was being _almost as good_ as a Malfoy.

The rational part of him knew, of course, that he would never be a match for her beloved father but falling short and being less popular than a Malfoy still stung. Hermione found it amusing to watch her best friend struggle not to make an inappropriate comment.

Secretly, Harry pitied the girl for not growing up with better people than Malfoys. Deep down he felt jealous and cheated. He hadn't seen the old Malfoy much yet but if Draco was anything to go by, it appeared that even Death Eaters were better family than his relatives.

Once Rose placed the last brick of LEGO she started to play with her newest toy. Harry thought it would be a great time for a toilet break to relieve his anger in private. When he returned he found the blonde little witch sitting next to her mother on the couch.

Hermione showed her photographs of Harry, Ron, and her from their Hogwarts time. The years they spent fighting evil wizards (like the girl's father) were the best he ever experienced. Sure the last years were nice but living day by day without family and without an aim lacked something.

He was older now and didn't need or want any big adventures but a little bit of excitement was required to make him feel alive. Harry would never admit it but he almost missed Ron and Hermione's constant fighting, not talking to each other for weeks and making up again. It was never easy for him to see his friends like that but at least it was real.

He saw Mr. Malfoy standing in the doorway watching the witches and quietly joined him.

"They are quite cute together, aren't they?" he asked the older wizard not knowing how to start a conversation with his former enemy.

"They are," he replied shortly.

"If you hurt either of them in any way imaginable..."

"I do know how precious my witches are, it would serve you well to remember this well, Mr. Potter," Voldemort's former right hand answered.

Harry stared at his opponent hiding how hard the truth in the Death Eater's words hit him. Luckily Draco came by and solved the situation.

"Do you wanna go out for a drink or two, Potter?"

The older wizard looked at his son showing him his disapproval.

"...or we could stay at home and have a glass of firewhiskey," Draco added knowing his father wouldn't babysit the boys.

"Firewhiskey sounds great."


	26. We shouldn't have done that

**We shouldn't have done that**

Harry pretended to go to bed early. The elves prepared him the same room, in close proximity to Draco's, he used at his last stay. Ron, still under the invisibility cloak, followed him shortly. They looked at each other for a moment before hiding beneath the fabric. They strolled through the room to practice. It had been five long years since they last did something like that after all.

They walked aimlessly through the halls of Malfoy Manor for an hour or two until they happened upon the library. It wasn't really a space either of them wanted to see, the wine-cellar was of more interest to the young wizards, but it was a space Hermione would gravitate towards and indeed the war-hero spotted her on the other side of the waste room.

The rumors were true. It easily rivaled Hogwarts' library even though the three of them regularly helped themselves to the restricted section. Looking to their right they found what appeared to be Malfoy-business-journals from the 15th century. Hermione was sitting on a black leather couch. Harry wanted to close the distance to their friend but Ron wasn't moving. The raven-haired wizard almost uncovered his partner in crime.

Ron's attention was focused on a chessboard placed on an ancient table. It wasn't the board itself that grabbed his attention but the wooden figures standing on it. They weren't as detailed as the once he knew. If they wouldn't be standing on the board he would have had difficulties identifying them. The young wizard had no idea how they were supposed to make a kill.

"It's a muggle chess-set. Better stay away from it, it's probably cursed," Harry said. Ron doubted that. He found a Shogi and a Go set on the other tables.

The two moved closer to the bushy-haired witch who was engulfed in the book she was reading. Arithmancy for Master Vol. VIX. She hadn't really changed after all. They decided to search the Death Eater's office instead when the lord of the Manor entered the library.

"How is the lady doing?"

"I am aching and it's your fault," Hermione answered.

The older wizard sat down next to her on the generous leather sofa. "Mmm."

"Give me a message," his wife commanded.

He loosened his tie and locked the doors with a swift movement of his wand trapping the boys effectively inside a room they would have never entered voluntarily.

Harry thought that watching the couple in their natural habitat might give them a better insight into their relationship than looking for illegal activity in the Death Eater's correspondence. Also, it was a lot less incriminating.

The young witch laid the book on the table and redirected her attention to her husband. He lifted her dress exposing her legs and petted her. Hermione moaned, her legs felt heavy, and having her husband massage them was exactly what she needed. After a few minutes, he asked her if she was feeling better.

"My back still hurts," she replied rolling to the side.

Knowing the drill Lucius laid down sideways behind her. With his thumbs, he applied pressure to her lower back. Voldemort's former right-hand man placed tender kisses on his muggle-born wife's neck. The scene was both hilarious and disturbing.

"Lucius?"

"Mmm?"

"I think our little one has fallen asleep," the young witch said blushing.

Harry who hadn't thought about why exactly the dark wizard had locked the doors only put the pieces together when he saw Ron's face drained of all color. His own face turned bright red. Surely they wouldn't... Draco said they're not...

Lucius placed his flat hand onto his wife's pregnant belly. It slowly wandered further and further downwards.

The young war-heroes wanted to run, to scream, to do just anything but they couldnt' risk exposure. That would raise awkward questions and they were just rebuilding their friendship. So they sat there and watched. Neither of them would be able to get those disturbing images out of their mind.

It wasn't kinky and he still looked fit for a man his age. Hermione's pregnant body wasn't the problem either. It was is dark mark. How could he be so nice and gentle to a mudblood. As funny as it sounded the most disturbing part was the genuine affection they had for each other. Didn't they realize that not so long ago he wanted to get rid of the very witch he now caressed for being filthy?

Hermione laid in her husband's arms about to fall asleep. She lifted her head and asked:

"Did you think about the present for my grandma?"

"Yes," her equally exhausted husband answered, and with that, they drifted away.

Harry and Ron were unable to sleep. Some things are just too traumatizing. The sun wasn't fully up when they heard somebody knocking on the door.

The former Death Eater accioed their cloths and Hermione caught her robes in flight. Within 20 seconds both of them were dressed enough to open the doors. Rose joined her still sleepy parents on the couch. The dark wizard flinched when his little girl jumped onto him her knees hitting his ribcage.

Ron and Harry were quick to leave the venue.


	27. Awkward

**Awkward**

Like always Lucius was the first to arrive at the breakfast table. He looked up from the Sunday Prophet when his wife entered the room. "What about a family name?" he asked her.

"Huh?"

"I was thinking about my son's future. He clearly will not take Mr. Potter's name."

"They could each keep their own," Hermione suggested not wanting to upset her proud husband.

"Then why would they marry?"

"Well, they could also have a double name like Potter-Malfoy..."

"It has to be Malfoy-Potter. The other one sounds hilarious."

"You always name your best argument last, so it will stick better in people's minds," Hermione said to keep her husband grounded.

"Ture, but the end of a word is usually swallowed. Therefore only the first part is important for recognition."

"That's technically only the Mal- in Malfoy," Hermione replied.

"How do my son's quarters suit you?" The dark wizard asked his future son-in-law who just entered the room.

"I didn't-" Harry said trying not to blush too much considering last night's events.

"Mr. Potter didn't spend the night in the room I've prepared for him," a little house-elf squeaked.

The young war-hero wanted to gag it for that statement. Why do house-elves always make things more complicated?

"I cannot comprehend it. How can they spend every single minute together, playhouse, and still deny their relationship?" The Malfoy patriarch asked his wife as if Harry wasn't even there.

"I think you owe me ten Galleon," she answered.

After breakfast, Harry and Draco took the children out in the garden while the house-elves prepared a feast. Harry envied Ron for being able to hide beneath the cloak since he wasn't able to look Hermione in the eyes after what he had witnessed. The young wizard was traumatized for life.

After flying Teddy over the estate with his broom, he wanted to take Rose but she was too shy, he saw Luna talking to a flower. The Special Ravenclaw was the first to have arrived. She greeted the Malfoy-man with a wide smile which made her former captors feel very uncomfortable.

"How can you even stand being here?" Harry asked his dear friend.

"What do you mean?" she sounded genuinely surprised.

"Bad things have happened here."

"It's Hermione's home."

"I don't get it! Shouldn't you two be the very last people to be OK with all this?"

"Hm, it's a self-defeating prophecy," Luna stated.

Harry sat down on the lining of the fountain thinking about her words. He guessed that there was some truth to it although he didn't quite understand the meaning behind her words, like always with Luna.

Fleur arrived next with Victoire and Domenique. The children were all close and played together. The Veela hugged Harry and kissed both of his cheeks. She wanted to invite them but Bill was working in Argentine and she thought it was best to wait for his return.

Harry hoped Ron was close and heard that the beautiful witch was going to invite them both since his friend felt redundant with all the change that occurred. Helping themselves to the picnic, Harry couldn't help but ask the witches what his former best friend could possibly see in the arrogant pureblood.

"He'z a handsome wizard, surely you can see that," the French witch commented.

Harry wanted to protest but was cut short by Fleur rescuing her older daughter from an enchanted gargoyle the shape of a dragon with a swift wand movement.

"Sorry, 'Arry."

Eating the cheese and slurping the wine the Veela decided that the fine cuisine was the true foundation of the most surprising match in the wizarding world because all Bill could prepare was half-grilled meat.

„The food was prepared by house-elves, Hermione would rather free them and she can't drink anyway," Harry replied.

Since the French still regarded earthly delights to be the main reason why Hermione married a Malfoy, he saw no reason to continue this discussion. After minutes without a single word spoken Luna interrupted the silence.

"Do you know anybody who likes to go to the library?"

'Hermione' the young wizard wanted to say but this was where the list in his mind ended. He was sure that there must be some Ravenclaw who shared her passion but then 'some Ravenclaw' didn't sound like the husband he wished for his best friend.

Hermione joined the party and Harry immediately felt his face redden. He stared at the ground hoping she wouldn't notice. He shouldn't have caught her doing that. It was impossible to get those disturbing images out of his mind.


	28. Sunday-brunch at Hermione's

**Sunday-brunch at Hermione's**

Susan arrived at the Manor and used the opportunity to check Hermione out. Everything was alright and her baby was healthy. Ginny and Pansy joined in a couple of minutes later and the six witches chatted while Draco and Harry had an eye on the children. The lord of the Manor made himself scarce. He had work to do, he claimed but Harry suspected that the older wizard felt uneasy among so many females gossiping.

Pansy talked to Fleur about her finances. Since the Veela still worked at Gringott's she helped her friends with the accounting. Most of them earned well and wanted to save up money so their children could have an easier start.

"So, this Nigerian oil-tycoon I started seeing a couple of weeks ago, gave me a flat in Chelsea for my Virginity," Pansy started to explain. Seeing the weird look on Hermione's face the young Slytherin turned to her. "You do know there are spells for that, don't you? How in Merlin's name did you manage to get a husband that wealthy without it?"

"I fail to see how a drop of blood could make a difference. He must have noticed that you're far from innocent," Hermione defended herself.

"I never said I was, anyway, since Fred won't have any trouble taking over my family's estate, I want to give it to my cute little half-blood."

"No problem, come by on Tuesday and I'll help you with the paperwork," Fleur replied.

"What will you do with your children when you see your sugar daddy?" Ginny asked.

"My father lied about getting a job after his community service was finished and I promised not to tell mother if he helped me out a little," the witch answered sounding as innocently as she possibly could.

"You could try honest work," Hermione suggested.

Luna who had talked to Susan in private rejoined the conversation announcing that she was pregnant again. She wanted to tell Neville but he was busy working at Hogwarts and wouldn't return home until next weekend.

"You won't be any less pregnant in five days," Ginny said.

"Shouldn't you wait 12 weeks before telling people?" Hermione asked.

"Nah, no need to. If things didn't work out we would be the ones supporting her anyway," the red-haired witch countered.

"I'm seeing Ron," Susan threw into the room. Instantly everyone went silent and looked at Hermione.

"You can have him," Hermione answered.

"You're not angry with me? Am I still welcome in this group?"

"Sure, I'm over him just don't come to me crying when he breaks your heart," Hermione said dryly.

To break the tension Pansy recommended the young Hufflepuff to marry the youngest son of the Weasley's because Molly liked being a grandmother and would gladly help her out and watch over her baby even if it wasn't blood-related to her.

"It's almost funny. Before I got pregnant I only wanted to get married to prevent my family form going extinct, now I would like to have someone consistent by my side," Susan told her friends.

The two Gryffindors exchanged a look that could only be translated with: Are you sure Ron is what you're looking for? But both of them bit their lips and said nothing.

As the day progressed they talked more and more about adult topics. After a couple of wine bottles they the Hufflepuff admitted to having slept with her new boyfriend and that he didn't disappoint. Now everyone wanted to hear what Hermione had to say about her ex's prowess. She had a different experience. Ron was nothing compared to her husband. Thinking of their first night together she blushed but said nothing.

The other witches made fun of her. She had been married for four years now and still blushed thinking of sex.

"You're such a prude, Hermione. You know there are other ways to do it than missionary under the blanked with lights out," Pansy said and everybody laughed.

Wishing that what they thought of his friend was actually true, Harry fled the scene. Walking the halls of Malfoy Manor he found the elder Malfoy in his office, to his surprise working. He looked up and stared at the young wizard. Harry felt his face grew hot.

"I, I had to get away from them," he stammered.

"I see, I have to endure them once every month. Where is my son?"

"He's with the other witches," Harry answered.

The former death eater inhaled sharply. Harry didn't realize what his slip of tongue implied. "There are things I never wanted to know about my son. Whether he prefers to top or bottom was among them. Although I can not say that I did not hope he would top, not that I am surprised."


	29. Letter from Mr Black

**Letter from Mr. Black**

Ron was sitting at the table eating his cereals when a strange owl dropped a letter right into his bowl. Milk splashed all over the table. The red-haired war-hero sent a hex after the animal but missed since the arrogant bird flew off without giving him as much as a single glance. Being in a terrible mood, he fished the letter out of his breakfast. The green wax-seal bore a familiar crest. Ron used a spell to dry the paper so he could read it.

His brother Percy invited him to dinner, he also took the liberty of inviting a 'friend' of him as well. His older brother even signed the paper shamelessly with 'Black'. That Ron even angrier. How dare he abandon the family once again.

But then he remembered that his mom told him that she wouldn't be angry if he accepted his wife's name, which led to a bigger question: How did his brother know about Susan?

"Mom! Percy invited me to dinner."

"Mmph."

"We don't talk about our brother," Ginny explained. "Because he abandoned us," she added.

Ron was frustrated. "I don't get it! Hermione marries Lucius Malfoy and everything is alright but when Percy marries the woman who decided the end of the war to our advantage, you make a fuss!"

"That's different! Hermione never abandoned us."

"Neither did Percy he just sent me a letter."

"Are you sure it was addressed to you and not Harry?" Ginny asked.

"Of course, I am," Ron said checking the envelope just to be sure.

"The problem isn't who he married or what his family name is, it's the fact that we never see him. He doesn't even greet us if he isn't alone. Nor does he come over for a chat or to dinner. We haven't even seen him over the holidays, his wife isn't into homely family gatherings," Ginny spat.

"It's not true. We always see Lord and Lady Black at the annually held Malfoy-Yule-Ball," George added.

Molly left the kitchen.

"Do you always have to spill oil into the fire?!" Ginny asked her one-eared brother.

"The thing is, our brother was sorted into Gryffindor just like us. That means he should theoretically be able to stand up to his wife, it's her problem if she doesn't want to socialize with us, or he could simply tell us that we aren't good enough for the noble Lord Black. Our parents are suffering from his absence at Christmas."

"You spent Christmas with Lucius Malfy?!" Ron looked confused.

"Don't be silly, it's not like anyone wants to have him at the Burrow anyway. But we're always invited to the ball, George even provides the fireworks, and the Malfoy-elves always sent us the food scraps so mom can concentrate on the preparations for yule. Mom and Dad only make short appearances but if we had too much to drink we could always crash at the Manor. Apparently, I stay there often enough to warrant my own room... also Hermione hasn't missed a single Christmas feast and we always have so much fun on boxing-day. Unlike Lady Black, her ex-husband always makes sure Hermione and the children attend," his sister explained.

"What children?"

"Draco and Rose," Ginny said.

"He's old and just wants the house to himself," George stated.

"That doesn't explain why they invited me and Susan to dinner," Ron groaned frustrated.

"Let me see... Ah, here, they don't know about Susan, they want you to bring Harry. But it would have looked wired if they only invited him but not their own blood," Ginny translated.

"You speak Slytherin?! Why didn't Narcissa invite Draco he could have taken Harry with him as well?"

"Oh, don't talk about those things, you see Lady Black still entertains the thought of having a proper pureblooded daughter-in-law. She still sends Draco portfolios of possible brides. We look at them together and make fun of them, the last 20 candidates didn't even speak English."

"But the thing with Harry was all over the news."

"Narcissa is great at ignoring those issues," Ginny said.

"Then what should I do?" Ron asked confused and overwhelmed.

"Simple, you and Harry attend, Narcissa will ignore your presence, even without oozing blue-pus all over her apartment she'll likely reject you, Percy will do whatever his wife wants him to do and they'll never invite you again. Just don't mention Draco or Scorpius, she abhors being a grandmother. It makes her sound old and she apparently never was a family person."


	30. Roadtrip

**Roadtrip**

Hermione sat on the big leather couch totally engulfed in the book she has been reading. Lucius joined her and gently bit her neck. His right hand stroked his wife's thigh.

"Lucius, you're distracting me," she giggled.

"Am I?" he asked coyly opening her loosely fitted blouse.

"Lucius."

"Mmm." His big hands cupped her breasts. He placed a series of kisses on her chest while his hand found its way into her knickers.

"I think we should get ready."

"I want you to come first," her husband replied.

Hermione looked at him for a moment deciphering what he was up to. "You wouldn't start my contractions just so you don't have to meet my relatives."

The older wizard made an undignified sound reminiscent of a ….. toddler.

The young witch kissed her husband's cheek. "But we could work on that once we return home," she suggested flirtatiously.

The unusual couple started to get dressed. While Hermione was still struggling to find something that looked well, fitted into a muggle setting and was stretchy enough to accommodate her belly, Lucius was quick to pick a suit.

"You can't wear an all-black outfit to my grandma's birthday. She didn't die. We're not attending a funeral."

They didn't even get dressed and he was already annoyed.

"You should wear something more colorful, something that looks friendly and likable," she suggested.

"Why is it so important what I wear? We have been married for four years now and I have yet to meet your relatives. It is unlikely that I will see them regularly in the future."

"Can you just for once stop being an arse?" the war-hero snapped.

The former death eater chuckled. "Tut, tut, tut, such language from a lady."

His wife stared at him and he immediately went silent. Lucius helped Rose to get dressed while the young with had to realize that her feet had gotten significantly bigger and that she couldn't fit into the pumps she wanted to wear. The young witch sat on the floor sobbing.

Lucius helped her up. Finally, all that exercising was put to good use. He told his wife to simply wear the boots it wasn't like she could see her feet anyway. After she returned to the bathroom the were finally good to go.

"Do you have the present?" Hermione asked.

"Excuse me?"

"You said you bought something for my grandma," Hermione shrieked.

"That was a week ago,"

And truthfully the dark wizard only said it so that his wife would spot buggering him. Luckily the former Death Eater still had some currency left he had yet to splash on LEGO. Hermione took several bills and put them in an envelope. The Malfoy patriarch made sure she didn't forget to put his wax seal on.

It was already much later than the Gryffindor had planned when they finally stood in front of the car. The vehicle wasn't much used and getting a high back booster seat into the matt black Jaguar proved challenging. Why didn't the elderly Granger choose a restaurant in central London? Then they could have apparated without raising awkward questions.

"I think, I need another car. A limousine maybe an Aston Martin or a Rolls Royce," Lucius stated.

"No," his wife said sternly.

"A Mercedes?"

Hermione knew the dark wizard only acquired a car to brag and mess with either Arthur or her dad. She just couldn't figure out who of them the intended target was. The young witch was stressed because they were late and her husband's driving did little to calm her nerves.

"I know what I am doing, I have flown a broom since I was three," her husband insisted.

The former Death Eater was, as funny as it sounded, actually was a confident driver but his younger wife would put more trust into his abilities if he wouldn't always ignore the speed limit. Didn't he know that paying the fees didn't give him the right to break the rules?

After an hour they had to have a break because someone needed to go to the bathroom. At least Rose managed to get that covered before the went out since she couldn't go to a public restroom all by herself. Only a few more weeks, the older wizard told himself. At the nearest gas station, Hermione bought chocolate and ice-cream.

"Did we not just have breakfast?"

"That was two hours ago," Hermione justified herself.

"You are not getting back into my car with this."

Back on the road things were far from smoothly.

"You're going the wrong way!" Hermione shrieked.

"I did turn left just like you told me to," Lucius defended himself.

"I meant the other left," the young witch replied.

"Do I look like a Legimence? Why are you so stressed about this anyway?"

"It's important for me that at least my grandma likes you. None of the people I like can stand you for obvious reasons."

"That young Veela likes me."

"But I don't like Fleur."

"Miss Weasley seems to be alright with me."

"But how do I know if she actually thinks your OK and not just that you're so much better than you used to be. My grandma is the only one I'm close to, who doesn't know about your history. If she likes you it means that you are actually likable... she just has to like you" Hermione explained.

"No pressure than."


	31. Dinner with Lord and Lady Black

**Dinner with Lord and Lady Black**

Ron couldn't understand what this fuss was all about. Sure the woman saved Harry's life and he was seeing her son but why did he have to accompany the famous war-hero buying a present for their hosts. The red-haired didn't get why they had to buy something at all. They were only having dinner with his least favorite brother and his wife. When they visited Bill they simply brought some leftovers from last night's dinner and sweets for the girls over.

Assuming that the lady would not appreciate a home-cooked meal they decided to buy flowers. Which presented the next question: What kind of flowers should they get? Or should they buy chocolate instead? No chocolate doesn't seem to be something a lady of her standing would actually eat. Or is there chocolate with no calories in the magical world?

"We should get a bouquet of equal flowers, same color, same sort. That wouldn't be offensive, I guess," Harry suggested.

"Your call."

They bought a bunch of rose-colored roses and Ron spent the next hour complaining about having spent so much money on something as useless as flowers even though technically Harry paid.

The two war-heroes arrived just in time. Harry looked stunning in the assemble he shopped with Draco and Ron, well, Ron was relieved to have gotten at least Harry's old dress robes to wear and therefore didn't look too embarrassing. Other than the fact that neither of them regularly wore robes and that they felt awkward in it, it promised to be not a totally terrible evening.

A house-elf wrapped in an old flannel opened them the door. After a minute of standing in the entrance Narcissa, wearing long and tightly cut dress robes, walked elegantly down the stairs. She looked beautiful. It was a miracle that the older witch arrived safely wearing high-heels and a long pencil-skirt since the staircase consisted of freely levitating glass-tiles with no banister rail what so ever.

The look of the maisonette apartment made Harry wonder how often Scorpius came to visit. Percy followed his wife. The lady smiled at Harry as he handed her the flowers. They chatted a bit leaving Ron aside until Narcissa realized that someone forgot to offer them drinks. "Percival," she said sharply.

The older wizard summoned a bottle of champagne and poured it into two glasses. He handed his wife and Harry one before filling a glass for Ron. They, now a little tipsy, followed the skinny witch upstairs to the formal dining room. Narcissa stood before the table until Percy offered her his chair.

Snipping with his fingers he summoned the house-elf. Ron's blood boiled. What upset him most was that his own brother, not the arrogant pureblood was the one who showed so little respect for the creature running their household.

Ron was about to grab the wrong knife when Harry stopped him. "Not this one, take that one."

"How do you know?"

"Draco told me," he answered hoping to have not said something wrong.

While cutting the tiny caramelized carrot on the huge silver plate she asked Harry if her sister was still seeing this muggle. Her distaste for nonmagical people was obvious.

"No, she's spending the summer with a boy from Hogwarts," Harry said hoping he didn't look too embarrassed.

"I don't get why she doesn't show more grace. Andromeda is a grown woman and shouldn't behave like a slut," Percy said.

"It is called emancipation," his older wife commented dryly.

"Oh, I didn't mean it like that way. I find it admirable when a witch knows what she wants. I only thought that-"

Narcissa cut him short with a simple gesture.

Ron's mouth was hanging wide open. He couldn't believe it. How did his older brother manage to not suffocate crawling that deep into his wife's butt? Was he always like that? The youngest Weasley-son thought his brother learned his lesson but clearly, he was mistaken.

After the first four courses, the red-haired's stomach growled loudly. An hour, a few courses and dessert later the two-war-heroes were starving. Percy showed them out and told Harry what a pleasure it was to have him and that was looking forward to repeating that.

Ron was about to strangulate his brother but he was also pleased that he wouldn't have to see him again. The raven-haired wizard tried to explain that he was rather busy with his Auror-training but the older wizard would have none of it.

"I also promised Andromeda to help her with Teddy," that part was true, "Hermione, Ginny, Fleur, Luna... they all have little ones and now that I'm back I have to help them out."

Having finally gotten rid of Percy, they were more than eager to leave.

"McDonald's?" Harry suggested.

That made his friend very happy. Being on the verge of hunger-death he ordered a hundred hamburger for them. The two wizards only managed to eat about thirty but made many new muggle friend's as a consequence. While dinner with Lord and Lady Black was dreadful the night turned out well.


	32. Great Grandmother Granger

**Great-Grandmother Granger**

Arriving at the inn. Lucius helped his witches out of the car. Before they entered the building the dark wizard tried to calm his young wife down. After all what could possibly go wrong.

"Do you have the gift?" Hermione asked.

"In the trunk."

The witch looked at her husband and at his car.

"I am not allowed to accio it, am I?"

"No, you're not."

Reluctantly the former Death Eater walked to the vehicle to retrieve the very present he forgot twice. Entering the inn, Rose ran to her grandparents ignoring the other muggle present. Immediately all eyes were fixed on them. The young witch took a deep breath. Lucius placed his hand on her back and led her further inside.

Hermione's father greeted them. "Lucius, how great you could make it."

Hermione looked confused.

"I told your father to behave," her mom explained.

A young woman walked up to the bushy-haired witch. "It's always about you. Can't you just once blend in and not steal the show. It's your grandma's birthday for god's sake."

They looked confused.

"Claudia wanted to utilize the occasion to announce her engagement to my nephew. They've been together for twelve years so it's hardly a surprise." Mr. Granger told them.

"They look happy together," the dark wizard stated.

"Then my bets are on an early divorce," Hermione said.

An elderly muggle walked towards them and hugged the witch tightly. "My little Hermione, all grown up. You looked good."

Hermione's grandma dragged the young family to a table in the corner. Lucius seated their daughter on his lap while his wife rested her head on the lady's shoulder. She fed her favorite granddaughter cake. The dark wizard on the other side was bothered by something. Why would his beloved wife bet against him?

"You're husband seems to be a fine gentleman and handsome he is."

Hermione smiled. "He has his moments."

"How come I've never met him before," grandma asked.

"Because we haven't seen each other in five years and back then I still thought I had a boyfriend."

"Mmm. Five years? Someone has been quite busy."

The war-heroine giggled.

Watching his wife chat with her grandmother while trying to explain to his daughter that she wasn't the only one who had one of those, the dark wizard fought hard to suppress the impulse of demanding answers.

"Father, do you have a father as well?" Rose asked.

"I do."

"Where is he?"

"He's a portrait now. I put him in the 'Bad Room'," Lucius explained.

"Why?" the little girl asked.

"Because I do not think highly of him."

"Why haven't I seen him?"

"He would not like you," He answered hoping his daughter would stop asking difficult questions. There was no good way of explaining to a child that she would be shamed and humiliated for coming from the uterus of a filthy mudblood. "Why do you have so little faith in the upcoming marriage of Ms. Claudia and your cousin?"

"Because you're a terrible judge of relationships," Hermione said.

"I am not."

"Yes, you are. In all those years, I've never seen one of your business-endeavors go haywire but you still have the fine chine you commissioned for Ginny and Harry's wedding stored inside a cupboard."

"You married me," Lucius defended himself.

"That was obvious. Everyone knew I would."

The Malfoy patriarch went silent and bit his lip.

"Lucius? You did propose to me."

"But I did not think you would accept," he admitted meekly.

"What!? Are you telling me you never wanted me as your wife?!"

"No, of course not. I did wish for you to be my wife, I still do. I just did not believe you would accept so quickly considering how long it took you to allow me to court you... I needed to make sure you wouldn't make me wait for another five years or so until you would be finally ready to take the next step. And then I was still coming to terms with my upcoming matrimony when you suddenly wanted a baby."

"How unusual of one's fiance to want a family!"

"You see, Draco was still mad at me for not talking to him in advance of proposing..."

"He had all right to be. This was something that affected his life as well. Let me guess, the way he reacted when I told him I was expecting, you never talked about it with him either!"

"I did. He laughed at me and told me I was too old for it. I interpreted it as his blessing."

Hermione's grandma laughed. "I like him, you should keep him with a man like that you'll never be bored."

This time the wizard was completely at loss. He has no idea what he had done right to have charmed the elderly lady and decided to play poker with his wife's uncles and cousins.

"You will not teach our daughter how to cheat at cards. I don't want a repeat of what happened in Macau," the young witch told her husband.

Grandma got curious.

"We were kindly asked to leave the casino," the wizard explained.

"Note the 'kindly'. Lucius managed to find in a back alley the only casino that didn't constantly mix the cars to prevent people form counting at Black Jack..."


	33. Witches eating out

**Witches eating out**

After dropping Casanova off at Zabini's place and drinking a cup of tea with Mrs. Zabini, Ginny flooed to Malfoy Manor. She handed Lucius his grandson and asked for Hermione. The two Gryffindors hugged each other tightly, a ritual the older pureblood just could not wrap his head around.

"How about going to an Asian restaurant for lunch?" the younger witch suggested.

"Sounds great."

"May I come too?" Rose asked.

"Of course."

Ginny kissed Scorpius who was still held by his grandfather. A scene the older Malfoy found disturbingly intimate.

"Don't worry, Mr. Malfoy. I'll return your witches in a good condition and at a reasonable time." Ginny grinned.

Sitting at their table they discussed what to order.

"Sushi sounds great."

"I hate you," Hermione commented.

"So we'll just each order something with rice or noodles and switch midway?" the Weasley offered.

"With rice. And with a spoon," the bushy-haired witch insisted.

"Why did I practice eating with chopsticks when you make me use a spoon?" Ginny asked.

What was the point of going to an Asian restaurant when you're not allowed to show a little off? Hermione pointed at her daughter, who was focused on the decoration. Luckily she hadn't started to play with it yet.

"You could let her try eating with chopsticks," Ginny suggested.

"Be a good godmother and teach her. But please do it when I'm not present. I'd like to keep my eyes."

"You think highly of your daughter."

"No, I know her. I remember that we used to eat outside in the garden because someone thought she could eat all by herself. On the plus side, we never had more birds on our terrace feeding of the mess she made."

"OK, you're daughter is as stubborn as you are. Why does it affect me?" the red-haired asked.

"Because she has a tendency to throw temper tantrums when her tiny hands don't do what she thinks they're supposed to do and she also doesn't understand that she's only three and it's OK for her to not be able to do the things adults can do," Hermione explained.

Ginny laughed. She was sure her friend was just like that when she was little. Eating their rice and vegetables, with a spoon, they decided to go eat sushi soon after the older of the two had her baby. Rose naturally wanted to tag along.

"We would have to go to a really fine restaurant, so we could eat with our hands," Hermione thought loudly.

"Sounds perfect. You make your husband watch over your baby and the three of us get to enjoy some quality time together."

"Good plan, I can't wait to have my body back. By the way, speaking of Lucius, did you know he doubted that I would marry him? Can you believe it?!"

"What? Give me the details," Ginny said excitedly.

"So, apparently he didn't want me to keep him hanging forever. I guess he had planned to place the ring somewhere I would always see it so I'd feel bad for not accepting."

Ginny laughed. "You signed up for this, that's what you get for marrying a Slytherin. But it's funny that all wizards are clueless when it comes to witches especially their better halves."

"What did he think? That I'll wait so long to commit to hin and then wait another five years to wed him? Sure he proposed awfully early but I'm glad he did. If he waited until he was sure I would accept... I don't think we would still be together."

"You could have made the first step. That's what my mom did anyway," Ginny suggested.

"I don't think I would have. I would have never known if he actually wanted to marry me or just didn't dare to say no."

"You think the big bad Death Eater would have gone through a wedding just because he didn't want a fight with you?"

Hermione raised a brow.

"Well, all things considered, I guess he would have," Ginny replied.

"Also you know what purebloods say about witches of lesser blood..."

"I think they talk about half-bloods, not muggle-borns. Like, you can bed as many half-bloods as you want but children are given by a pureblood."

Hermione looked angrily at her friend and pointed at her daughter.

"Sorry, I forgot about Rose. But I didn't use any bad words," the younger witch defended herself.


	34. The Wedding

**The Wedding**

Susan yawned. It was still early and she didn't want to get up. She cuddled up to Ron. "I don't want to get up."

"Neither do I," he said kissing her. "We could stay in bed..." the young war-hero suggested.

"Mm. Either that or we should attend Theo's wedding."

"You want to take me to a wedding?"

"Sure, you're my boyfriend it's not a secret. And I don't want to go alone. I hardly know anybody there. Hermione and Lucius won't be staying long. Her condition is the perfect excuse to avoid those old-fashioned purebloods. Draco and Blaise are only in for the party and Pansy will go with George... I frankly don't even know why they invited me," Susan said.

"Really? You don't know why anyone would want to see you at their wedding?" Ron asked confused.

"No, why?"

"To get more comfortable with you before they need you professionally," Ron explained.

"That makes sense. I've never seen it that way."

The joining of Theodore X. Nott and Astoria Y. Greengrass was the highlight of this year's social season. All the still unwedded pureblood witches spent several months on acquiring the perfect gown that would catch the eye of an eligible pureblood bachelor.

Before the war ended that was exactly what Pansy was doing and what she had always thought to be continuing until she had a sizable ring on her finger. Now she rushed through her rooms hoping to find at least a set of robes she hadn't worn too often before while her mother complained about her ungrateful daughter.

At 23 the young witch was years past her prime and should have been long married, have given her in-laws an heir, and troubled her new family. Did she not realize that her selfish behavior only made her mother look bad?

Marcus Flint, the half-troll, would have taken her as his bride despite the disgrace that crawled out of her womb. But the disappointment of a daughter refused his generous offer. The wizard Mrs. Parkinson was made to marry didn't help either. Mr. Parkinson was always quick to point out that raising children was the duty of the witch. He was grateful for having Fred Jr. as an heir since his brother didn't survive long in Askaban and the little half-bred was merely collateral damage.

George arrived in time and helped to get the children ready. Pansy needed to look great since her former best friend Daphne was present as well. She was pregnant again. After giving Gregory Goyle twin boys she wanted to have a daughter as well. The two Slytherins used to be inseparable. They now hated each other equally passionately. The older Greengrass, now Goyle, broke off all contact with her housemate when the dark-haired witch decided to keep her baby.

Arriving at the venue George handed the couple their gifts, sweets from his shop. The bride thanked them just as politely as the other guests not revealing her true thoughts. They were seated at the last table in the corner with Susan and Ron. The four catted and it didn't feel awkward.

Hermione, Lucius, Draco, and Blaise sat on a table close to the groom. Lucius discussed some legislation with Theo's aunt while Hermione tried not to hex anybody. Like always people had nothing better to do than backbiting. The bushy-haired witch kept looking at the clock. If it was up to her they wouldn't have attended at all. But since Astoria was once promised to Draco and her husband maintained close business-relations with the Nott's not making an appearance was socially unacceptable.

Suddenly there was a scream coming from the table close to the bride. Her sister Daphne Goyle jumped up, her hair frizzy and blue and her nose was bleeding. Someone must have slipped her nosebleed-nougat. And she suspected George himself to be the culprit. As luck would have it the wedding photographer caught the scene on camera. That incident would surely fill the gossip columns of tomorrow.

Then the war hero's face turned white. She had just realized that her youngest would be in the same year as Daphne's little 'princess'. She secretly hoped that the girl would look like her father and brothers who already reminded her of Grabble and Goyle. Hermione wondered what idiot those two would follow blindly.

Pansy on the other side was happy and Ron burst out laughing. The bride somehow managed to ignore the fiasco caused by her sister and danced elegantly around the mines that better society enjoys throwing in each other's path. Hermione was jealous of the skill the younger witch showed. She still felt like an elephant in a porcelain store. It wasn't like she wanted to deal with those people but not being able to do it stung. Luckily she was very pregnant and they could leave early. Saying bye to the bride, who was a kind person she tried not to show her relief of being able to leave too clearly.


	35. Playground

**Playground **

Lucius sat on the bench at a playground analyzing the latest movements in the financial sector, deciding which stocks to buy and which to dump. He had a meeting later that day with his broker and promised Rose to take her to the Natural History Museum afterwards. The little witch was thrilled to see the dinosaur-bones and secretly the Malfoy patriarch was looking forward to it as well.

Why he had to take his daughter to a public playground though, he didn't understand. Even though this particular one was rather nice since it was situated in a good neighborhood. The very thought of being bothered by noisy muggle-woman shamelessly hitting on him while watching their children, disturbing him from his crucial work, and not being allowed to hex them made the former Death Eater shiver.

And the fact that he did not even get the point of this endeavor did not help either. Sure an exhausted Rose was less troublesome during meetings but he could have watched her play on his estate just as well. The older wizard suspected that Hermione wanted their daughter to have at least some contact to muggle children which in itself was a lost cause since all Rose ever did was occupying the swing, for hours, regardless if someone else wanted to have a go at it as well.

Calculating his profit margins to the squeaking sound of the swing the dark wizard heard a couple fighting from afar. Always the Slytherin looking for blackmail material, he couldn't help but tune in.

"-I can't pay you alimony for the next couple of months my wifes getting suspicious," the man said.

"She didn't care about it for the last decade."

"This time it's different, something got to her."

The woman shrugged. "Even if, I fail to see the problem."

"I still love you," the man said.

"And I told you when I got pregnant, that you had to break up with at least one of us and you didn't. That's why I left you. What do you want me to do? Should I talk to your wife?"

"Really? You would do that for me?"

"Sam, why don't you run to the playground and wait there for us," the lady told her son and waited for ten seconds before slapping her ex.

Lucius chuckled. Living in a world without television made him appreciate those dramas even more so. The boy complimented Rose on her dino-cardigan.

"Thanks, Molly made it for me. It's an Ankylosaurus."

The mother sat down next to the wizard. She wasn't what he expected from a 'side-dish'. She looked tough and must have been in her forties already. She was also quite heavy, not in a good way and she wasn't particularly pretty either.

"You have a cute... daughter?"

"She is," he replied annoyed. Here we go again.

"Do you come often to this playground? I've never seen you here before."

"Only when I have to work in London," Lucius said.

"Where are you from?"

"Wiltshire."

"That sounds nice."

"My wife keeps complaining about the lack of electricity." Not really but he had to drop the keyword. It must have worked since the lady was now silent.

"What do you do for a living," she asked after a while.

"I manage my family's estates."

"That's great. I just happen to be one of London's best daytraders," she answered handing him her business card.

He didn't even look at it but was about to hand her a 10 000 Pound check to invest simply because he was curious and day trading sounded interesting when he heard Rose falling off the swing. Out of reflex, he stopped the wooden plank from swinging back and hitting is daughter's head magically. Unfortunately, the boy had seen him.

"Mom! Did you see that?! He just did this thing I told you about! And you didn't believe me!"

The mother looked confused. Lucius turned her card. 'Sophia S. Goyle' it said. Well, this was getting interesting. He added another zero to the check and handed it to Ms. Goyle. She couldn´t believe that someone she just met would invest such a large sum just like that.

"Under one condition, you tell me something about your biological parents."

She was now even more confused. How did he know she was adopted? "I don't know much, I was adopted when I was six or seven..., they... Why can't I remember anything about them?" the lady just now realized with tears in her eyes that something was odd.

"I think you should talk to my wife."

"Is she a psychiatrist?"

"No, but she does know a thing or two about population-genetics... she will help you out."

The man joined his ex after he smoked a few cigarettes on the bench. His face was still red.

"Father, I don't like him," Rose said hiding behind her father.

Everyone stared at the man waiting for an answer. He swallowed hard. "She's the granddaughter of a friend he explained to his ex.


	36. Ron and Susan after Work

**Ron and Susan after Work**

After a long day of work in the joke-shop, Ron was happy to see his girlfriend. Susan picked him up after an equally long day at the clinic. They hugged each other. Even after he closed the shop George was still not letting his brother go. The shelves needed restocking.

"I'll help you," the young medi-witch said to her annoyed boyfriend but the older Weasley brother wouldn't let her.

It was rude to make a guest work when he got a younger brother to do so. He offered her a chair and sweets. Susan gladly sat down but refused to eat any of the sweets. She wasn't willing to take any risks in her condition.

Once he was finally done with all the tedious tasks his brother assigned to him he was quick to leave the shop with the pretty witch. Ron proudly took her hand as they strolled through Diagon Alley. Since most shops were already closed it wasn't too crowded.

Susan told him about her work-day at St. Mungo's. She had to treat a few injuries from misguided hexes and a boy who fell from the rooftop after a burst of accidental magic. While she was a healer and knew significantly more about curing curse-damage then the average witch it wasn't her specialty and she much preferred to check on expecting witches and their offspring.

Tomorrow she would spend the afternoon checking on Daphne which she was grateful for. Susan would go nuts if she had to help her colleagues at St. Mungo's out on a daily base. She didn't mind being available for her witches 24/7 and having irregular working and sleeping patterns.

Proud to be making his own money the young war-hero treated his witch to a big portion of ice-cream. They ordered the biggest one the ice-cafe had available and shared it. The two of them weren't the only ones who enjoyed a long summer evening outside.

On a bigger table next to them a group of ministry employes, judging by the bits of conversation he overheard, were spending their after-work-hours there as well. They seemed to be working in different departments and chatted freely not only over their families but also work and other ministry-employees as well.

Apparently did an older wizard not enjoy working under Draco as he complained a lot about the much younger demanding wizard. 'Malfoy' appeared to be some kind of magic word that immediately triggered a discussion about the family as a whole.

A younger witch working in Hermione's department complained about her perfectionism while older witches were much more interested in her private life. His best friend's marriage seemed to be a topic everybody had something to say about.

A lot of ugly words were spoken. She was called a disgrace to the Malfoy-family and a whore. While some of them felt betrayed by her for marrying a death eater others thought a wizard as stunning as Mr. Malfoy could have found himself a better wife.

A young wizard went as far as insinuating Hermione to be the reason for the scandalous divorce of Lord and Lady Malfoy in the first place. That would explain how he managed to avoid Askaban again.

Ron couldn't take it anymore. He jumped up and turned around. He pointed the long spoon he was holding onto tightly at them as if it was a wand.

"HOW DARE YOU! You have absolutely no idea what she's been through! Without her, we wouldn't have made it and all of you would be either dead or enslaved by Voldemort!" he screamed at them.

They gasped. He had just said his name out loud. Everyone was staring at them. Susan took his hand and dragged him away before he would do something he might regret. She kissed his cheek and smiled at him. That seemed to ease the tension immediately. They walked in silence.

"How can you deal with it? After every one you lost," he asked the witch by his side.

"Mm. For once, I grew up with my aunt she was never full of vengeance. I mean, I have ears, I knew what people were talking about. When I was younger I got into a big fight with her, I just couldn't understand how she could let the people who murdered my parents get away with it. She said that it wasn't that easy and that the worst crimes are not illegal. I didn't really understand it back then. It's odd but I knew she kinda respected Mr. Malfoy, I overheard them talking once. She was to him like she was to Mr. Shaklebolt, unlike Fudge. She couldn't stand him, even less after Harry. My aunt didn't even try to hide it but the former minister was totally clueless. Also, you know, Rose was the first baby I delivered all by myself. Before that Madame Hewitt, who trained me was always near. She even postponed her retirement to give me more time to get comfortable in my abilities. But still, I was so nervous, I felt like I had no idea what I was doing. And it was Hermione's first baby as well. But Mr. Malfoy remained calm. Even though I would bet he wasn't present when Draco was born. It was a different time and can you imagine Lady Black appreciating it when someone saw her sweaty, screaming in pain and cursing? Anyway, that night he did a great job allowing Hermione to scream at him, hex him and I think she even bit him at some point. It might sound silly but for all his wrongdoings he has his nerves in check even under high pressure. I'll be forever grateful for that."


	37. Father to Son

**Father to Son**

Ron was sitting outside. His gaze wandered aimlessly over the land. Why was it all so complicated? It hadn't felt like he was gone for that long. Time moved quickly and the young wizard didn't quite know what to do with himself.

He lifted a few small stones from the ground and threw them away. He didn't realize how late it got until his dad returned from work. The older Weasley saw his youngest son sitting outside and sat down next to him. They sat there next to each other for a while in silence.

"I don't understand it," Ron told his dad.

"What?"

"Everything," the young wizard groaned frustrated. "We haven't been gone for that long and now everything is so different. And 'Mione is angry with me."

"You can't blame her for that."

"She married Lucius fucking Malfoy! Urgh. You've been to Hogwarts with him. You hate him!"

"I'm sorry son. If I could turn back time... I wish I hadn't passed my prejudice and hatred onto you. I didn't know Lucius was a family man. I only ever saw him as a scheming Death Eater," the older wizard said.

"Hmpf. He probably didn't know it himself," Ron mocked.

After another moment of sitting silently next to each other, the young wizard voiced his thoughts out loud. "I think they're actually happy," he said frowning.

"I hope so. For Hermione at least, Merlin knows Lucius doesn't deserve her," Arthur replied holding his fist up high.

There was more that bothered the young red-haired. Was it common that people talked so badly about Hermione?

"It's almost funny, the very same witches and wizards who looked away when their muggle-born colleagues and friends were prosecuted and terrorized are now complaining very vocally about a member of the golden trio marrying a Death Eater," Arthur explained.

Unfortunately, Percy, his own son was one of them. He guessed that it was easy to ignore his wife's involvement with pureblood-supremacists when her wrists weren't decorated with _his_ mark.

He accioed the edition of the Quibbler which contained the article Luna wrote about the unexpected couple. The by a year younger witch wrote about their union that it was a sign of hope and progress and she also stated that their similarities by far outweigh their differences.

She speculated that their similar experiences were what drove them together. Both of them went through hell and had all control stripped from them at some point. All for their family. Only to find that said family broke apart soon after the war was over.

Reading those words made the young wizard's chest constrict making it hard to breathe. The war-hero didn't know why returning home was so much harder than leaving.

"It's the reverse culture shock," Arthur explained.

Both Charlie and Bill are struggling with it. While Charlie only returns to England when something exciting was happening, Bill decided to settle down there so his parents could watch over the children when both he and Fleur were away on a business trip. On the rare occasion that he did spend an extended period of time in the country, the French Veela made sure to spend as many weekends as possible away, visiting her extended family or on short trips to ease his itchy feet.

While most people have the problem that after an extended period away they have adopted many foreign customs and have developed so much without even noticing that they feel out of place returning home. Ron had the opposite problem. He returned to a world that had changed much without him.

The two of them stared on the ground for a bit.

"When are you bringing Susan over for dinner?" Arthur asked.

"I'm moving in with her," Ron announced.

"It's that serious?"

"Yeah. I know it's wired. I don't think I would have ever thought about her that way if she hadn't asked me out but once we were alone and talked for a little while, I realized that she was the one for me. I've never felt anything like that before... Oh Shit! I'm going to be a father! This is happening all so quickly. I have no idea what to do!"

Arthur placed his hand on Ron's back.

"It's all gonna be alright. I felt just the same when we had you."

"Em, dad?" Ron asked confused.

"What? Do you think that just because I already had five children that I was any less worried? I didn't know how if I manage to bring you up properly and how I was supposed to put enough food on the table. And if Molly still could manage when I have to work more often over time with you guys getting constantly in trouble. And then we had Ginny. There was suddenly a girl and we never had one before and I couldn't afford to buy her extra clothes..."

"She never minded wearing our old stuff."

"And I'm very grateful for that," Arthur said.

"I wanna do right to her, Susan, I mean," Ron said.

"I'm very proud of you son."

Arthur stood up and went inside. He returned a couple of minutes later with a small box. He handed it to his son. Ron opened it carefully. Inside was a gold ring with a magnificent purplish tanzanite.

"It's the very ring your grandfather used to propose to my mom. I want you to have it, Mr. Bones," he said smiling proudly.

Although he had six sons Arthur never felt like passing it on to one of the others. Bill gave Fleur a set of jewelry he found in an Egyptian tomb. He always brings something for her home from his trips. A family tradition both of then enjoy greatly. And Percy, well, the older Weasley had actually no idea how he ended up married to his wife. He suspected that Narcissa decided to get married and picked and paid for a ring herself.

For Ron, it meant the world. Not only was his father understanding and supportive but he also entrusted him with the biggest, and only, family-treasure.


	38. Birth

**Birth**

Harry and Hermione sat in a cafe drinking hot chocolate. The table was covered with slices of various cakes. Hermione couldn't make up her mind and Harry didn't dare to say something.

"I'm not mad that Ron proposed to Susan! I'm glad he is showing more responsibility, I just want our friendship back!"

"You were always fighting," Harry replied and she glared at him.

It was true Ron and she were never well-matched and while the young witch loved her husband and could never imagine being with somebody else, it still stung. It stung that Ron was growing up for someone else and not for her. It hurt that she wasn't reason enough for them to return home and it humiliated her that he didn't even have the grace to break up with her.

The young war-heroine was also ashamed of herself for being happy that Susan, no matter how hormonal and in love she was, declined, wanting to see how things work for them as a family before tieing the knot.

"Hermione? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she snapped.

"You don't look fine," Harry said.

Chewing on her apple-pie she tried to swallow down her anger. The young witch shifted her weight in the chair trying to find a comfortable way to sit. They talked about their jobs when the young witch felt a sharp pain in her back. She inhaled sharply. Harry looked worried.

"I'm fine, really. I just think my contractions have started. About time, I can't take it much longer."

Her statement did little too ease Harry's nerves. The young war-hero started to panic. He didn't know what to do. Should he call someone? Susan? Lucius?

"Relax. We got plenty of time. Let me at least finish my cake and then you may bring me home."

Back at home, Hermione looked for her husband. He was busy with their tax-report so she sat quietly down in her sitting room not wanting to disturb him. Once he finished the young witch made him take a walk with her.

As her contractions got closer together she told Harry to inform Susan and made Rose play with her brother. The kids needn't witness anything too disturbing.

By the time the young medi-witch arrived the worst of it was already over. She found Hermione and Lucius in a generous bathroom, sweaty and exhausted leaning against the wall. They looked happy and a little surprised at the speed of it all, holding their not so little baby in their arms.

"You are late. Your services are no longer required," Mr. Malfoy said when the young witch entered the room.

"I still have to check on the mommy and the baby," Susan replied unboxing a few potions.

"I presume, I should check on you as well Mr. Malfoy?"

"I am fine. Just a broken finger." Lucius smiled.

"I see, Hermione was rather tame this time."

They showered and an hour later entered the drawing-room.

"It is a boy," the former Death Eater announced proudly.

"Great. 'Cause you never had one of those before," Draco said rolling his eyes.

"Do you want to hold him?" Hermione asked her best friend handing Harry her newborn.

"He's so small," Harry said.

At nine pounds that was far from accurate and the Lord of the Manor felt offended by this statement. His wife did not bear small children.

They sat there and jokingly discussed if they could now prove that Draco was all Narcissa's fault. Hermione disagreed. There was a very small but real chance that their baby shared none of its chromosomes but the Y with Draco and therefore it was impossible to estimate his ex-wife's influence on their son's personality. Also, Lucius didn't have nearly enough children for a proper statistical analysis.

Draco stood up and left the room. Hermione stood up and followed him. Everything felt wired. "You do know that Lucius won't disown you or love you any less just because he now has another son."

"Hmpf. Easy for you to say, you always get what you want from him. Father won't even look at my business-plans," the blonde wizard said frustrated.

"Well, I also don't wait for his or anyone's permission. You make your own money. You know how hard you have to work for it. If you want to invest it you can do so without your father. If things work well he would entrust you with more of the Malfoy-enterprises and if not, well, you don't have to tell him.

"When have you become so wise?" Draco asked.

"I've known your father for a very long time."

They hugged each other and the young wizard carried his stepmother on his back back. Hermione placed Rose on her lap. The little one didn't quite know what to make of it all. They discussed names and possible god-fathers. Hermione suggested Harry.

The Malfoy-men weren't convinced that he could do the job. But Hermione didn't plan on dying and Harry wouldn't abandon her ever again. The war-hero was far too scared of the young witch being able to track him down. Once they settled on Harry as a godfather they thought about which of their favorite names would fit him best. They settled on Richard as in Richard Lionheart. The associations with a name like that were too funny to pass.


	39. Custody Case

**Custody Case**

Hermione only reluctantly went to work. While it was important for her to continue to be productive and archive something so shortly after giving birth she would have preferred to cut her hours, do a little home office, and spent the most of the day cuddling her family. But Zabini's custody case crossed her plans.

The young witch never doubted her husband's ability to take care of both Rose and their newborn son, she still felt guilty for leaving them alone even though it was just for work. After Lucius reassure her for the hundredth time that he got it all covered and if he did indeed need her she was only a floo-call away.

Hermione finally managed to depart. Arriving at her office she found an enormous pile of paperwork that remained untouched during her short absence and chocolates and cards congratulating the war-heroine to the birth of her second one.

Sitting behind her desk she couldn't help but feel free. This was the first time in nine long months that she was truly all by herself. It was liberating to be able to eat and to drink what she wanted and to have some privacy. Enjoying her newfound solitude reading through the reports and working through those documents went rather smoothly.

Her department's secretary opened the door to her office. The young wizard was startled. He hadn't expected her back so soon.

"Blaise," Hermione explained annoyed.

"Well then, you still have four days until the Mermaid-Rights-Act is due," he said dropping the file on her desk.

This was why she hated taking long holidays. Before and after one had to triple one's workload since no one else would take care of it. This was hardly relaxing. On the plus side, since nobody knew she was back behind her desk, she also wasn't disturbed and the young witch managed to get done a lot.

Like always Lucius' timing was perfect. He brought the children and lunch over and visited his younger wife. While those days he still spent a lot of time at the Ministry, the purpose had changed rather drastically. Gone are the days of lobbying for economic reforms that mainly benefitted his own enterprises, he now entered the building only to visit either his wife or son. What had really taken him by surprise was how little he missed being a lobbyist, blackmailing officials, and plotting. He still made sure to be up to date but now discussed new legislation with his wife in private.

The former Death Eater handed Hermione baby Richard and lifted Rose up. While the witch bottle-fed her son, her daughter enjoyed cuddling her father. Their little one still struggled with being a big sister.

Over a jar of soup, she told her husband that she had a meeting with Blaise and Ms. Miller in the afternoon. She didn't have nearly enough time to prepare to feel comfortable but that was fine since custody was something best discussed between the parents with their child's interest in mind.

Undressing her robes she put her notes into her bag. Hermione put on a blazer hoping she wouldn't stand out too much in a muggle-environment.

"Wish me luck," she said kissing her children and her husband bye.

The war-heroine was shocked to find that both Ms. Miller and Blaise have lawyered up. Theo, freshly returned from his honeymoon, congratulated her on the birth of Richard. This did little to ease her confusion. Neither Pansy and George nor Ginny and co needed legal-representation.

They stated their terms. Theo demanded full custody and the muggle-lawyer a hefty sum of child support. This was a slap in everybody's face. Hermione always thought that parents would do whatever is best for their children no matter how hard it is, Blaise had to learn that muggle almost always granted the mother full custody and the muggle had to deal with the fact that they wouldn't be able to force a penny out of Zabini.

Hermione, unlike Theo, did not believe that Ms. Miller got pregnant on purpose for the cash after all the pill wasn't that easy to just stop and start on again. Mediating this ordeal was a lot harder then she had thought.

"You are telling me that I'm not allowed to see my child but I have to pay, so basically I lose twice." Blaise still didn't believe what he was hearing.

Since Ms. Miller, unlike Blaise, had a job and a stable income, there was no way her lawyer could make the two wizards understand that she had to stop working to stay at home and look after the child. Especially not when that was all Blaise ever wanted.

Hermione ordered a break. She found Ms. Miller outside crying, her lawyer tried to tell her that there was no way they could get away with it. Hermione knew it better. If they didn't reach an agreement it was likely that someone would send an Unspeakable to Obliviate her right after giving birth.

While the young war-heroine had worked tirelessly on improving the standing of minorities, she also knew there was still a long way to go.

"If I hadn't told him I was pregnant with his child..."

"Then you would have been a struggling single mom and we would have still found out eventually. Only by then, it would have been much harder to integrate your little one into our society." Hermione placed her hand on the muggle woman's back.

"You think so?"

"I know it. Blaise is not a bad guy. He really does well with his other child. I won't tell you that it's easy, but you two can figure it out. It's for your child's sake."


	40. A Night Out

**A Night Out**

Hermione put the red cocktail dress Ginny lend her on. It was knee-long and the longest dress the young Weasley had in her wardrobe. Since Hermione's after baby body was much curvier then the professional Quidditch-players the red dress ended above her knee.

Scandalous, her old-fashioned husband thought. The young witch picked fine-mashed fishnet-tights and put them on. The older wizard only reluctantly let his witch go. He did not like it when other men could see his wife like that, at least not when he was not there to make understood that the gorgeous witch was all his.

Hermione kissed her children and Lucius bye. While she was looking forward to going out with her mom it pained her to leave her baby alone after they shared her body for so long. She knew very well Lucius could handle it yet not being her son's entire world anymore felt harsh.

The young war-heroine apparated to her parents' house on the outskirts of London. They took the tube to the city center and went to one of the finest clubs. Draco had recommended the venue.

Two hours later the dentist had to realize that it was a bad idea. Her daughter was sleeping on a table, her new baby must have worn her out, the drinks were ridiculously expensive and guys were hitting on them. Couldn't they understand that women just wanted to have a good time every now and then? She was a grandmother for god's sake.

Dr. Granger reached her lowest point when somebody offered her cocaine. How she wished to have gone to the playground instead. She thought partying with her daughter would be fun like her friends always made it out to be.

She grabbed her daughter's arm and dragged the sleepy witch outside. Having a midnight snack in a nearby fast-food restaurant they exchanged a bit of gossip.

"I was actually a little happy when I heard about Chris' mishap," Hermione admitted.

"So was I. I just hoped I wouldn't have to socialize with his wife anymore. She always made me feel like I abandoned you," her mother said.

"She can't still be with him! He has a child with another woman!"

"Oh yes, she can. There is a lot that that woman can ignore."

"You can't ignore a child!" Hermione cried.

"That's what I always thought, but we care about our husbands and are not only married because it's convenient and so we don't have to justify ourselves for not being married and having children."

"Dad and Lucius would never betray us, they're not suicidal."

The two ladies discussed their next step. They couldn't return home that early their husbands would mock them forever. The dentist remembered that the Royal Opera House was showing Twilight od the Gods from Wagner. Out of experience, the two knew that many people wouldn't stay countless hours, it's really only 16 hours spread out on three evenings, until the end.

They decided to go to the opera house and wait for the people discreetly leaving during the intermission. Being a Gryffindor, Hermione was the first to ask a couple leaving early if she could buy their tickets. They looked at the young witch as if she was insane and took a cab. A couple of awkward tries later the two women for tickets for free and they arrived at their seats just in time to see the latter half of the performance.

They left with a crying and a laughing eye. On the one hand, they enjoyed the show greatly but they hated not being able to bring their husbands. It wasn't like the men wouldn't enjoy an evening watching an opera or a ballet, the main issue was they couldn't stand each other.

Hermione apparated home. She kicked her shoes off. A little uneasy on her feet she went to search her husband and son. She found Lucius sleeping on the couch with little Richard sleeping on her belly. They looked so cute together.

Admiring her wizards for a while the young witch stood in the doorway. Her son got hungry and without much of a warning started to cry. Hermione walked up to them and carefully lifted her baby. Lucius who was just ribbed out of his sleep looked at her.

"Shh, I have him," she whispered to the older wizard who was quick to fall back asleep.

After giving her son a bottle of milk, Hermione took a nap as well. At least until someone needed another bottle or a fresh diaper.


	41. The Spider-Drawing

**The Spider-Drawing**

Draco was confused to find Hermione in the wine-cellar. It was still early in the afternoon and she would be the last person who would approve of a glass or two of wine at this hour. Especially not when her children are around. She handed him his baby-brother and crawled behind behind a barrel with a jar in her hand.

"Is this a muggle-thing?" the blonde wizard asked his former classmate.

"Rose has drawn a spider," she replied.

Draco had no idea what the bushy-haired witch was talking about. Maybe it was the air. It could be full of alcohol vapor and it has been a while since she last had a drink.

"You're not making sense."

"Like I said," she started slightly annoyed, "Rose has drawn a spider. But it was all wrong. And now I think I'm a terrible mother because the elves keep the house too clean and my little one has no idea what a spider looks like..." Hermione wiped the tears from her eyes.

Draco wanted to run.

"Sorry, I just had a baby I might be still a little emotional," she explained.

"You know your abilities as a mother are not judged by the number of legs a three-year-old draws on a spider," the blonde said looking at the drawing Hermione had handed him.

"It's not just the fact that she forgot a pair of legs. Look where they are located!"

"On the body," Draco said.

To him, a circle with six lines attached was undoubtedly a spider or a sun. The young witch was hardly back on her knees crawling behind shelves filled with wine bottles. There must be a spider in here somewhere. Looking at her the young wizard wondered how he managed to put up with her.

"I'm sorry for you. Your mother is insane," he told Richard.

"I've heard that," a voice from behind the shelves said.

"By Merlin, your ass is huge, gorgeous."

Hermione stood up her hair was wild and electrocuted. She stared at him. "For god's sake, Draco! I'm your stepmother. No matter how gay you are, I will not have you comment on my butt or call me gorgeous, love."

"OK, chill!"

"I will not chill! Start behaving like a grown-up!"

"Or what? Will you send me to bed early or spank my ass?"

"You wish. I might tell Harry not to spank you," Hermione replied.

They glared at each other. Draco gave in first. "Fine, I won't be calling you things, mommy. And I won't comment on your backside no matter how big it is."

"How generous of you."

It felt like forever but Hermione finally managed to catch a little spider. She carried the creature to the sitting room Rose still occupied drawing. She cast a quick _Momento_ and accioed a magnifying glass. Picking up a pencil and paper she explained the anatomy of _Aranea _in detail.

Drawing two circles she told her daughter that all of the eight legs are situated on the smaller Cephlotorax and not the abdomen. Also, spiders have a pair of pedipalps, in scorpions, they've become enlarged and are for grasping. In addition to that spiders have also fangs called chelicera. Their up to eight eyes have a single lens but most species have six of them.

Draco had a hard time following her description. He was sure that Rose didn't understand a single word her mother said. At least he hoped that.

When Lucius returned home from a business meeting he lifted a drawing from the table. He looked proudly at it.

"Look what Rose drew!" he said to his wife.

"I've drawn that," Hermione said taking it out of his hand.

"Oh."

Twenty minutes later Rose finished her work of art. Draco compered it to Hermione's spider-drawing. Now that the girl knew how they looked like it was hard to know who has drawn which.

"Now it's official. You draw like a three-year-old," the blonde git announced amused.

"It will look great in my office," Lucius said looking at his girl's work.

"I think, you meant my office. I've been enduring your son all day," Hermione countered.

"What in Merlin's name did he do this time?"

"Your lovely son told me I had a fat butt."

"And you didn't hex him?"

"He was holding Richard," his younger wife explained.

Lucius cupped her butt cheeks with his large strong hands. They fitted perfectly. He kissed her neck and whispered something into her ear. The young witch blushed.

"Did you just offer sexual favors for our daughter's artworks?"

"I did," he admitted shamelessly.

"Fine, you can have it."

Playfully chewing on her ear he pressed her against his body. Hermione bit her lip in anticipation when suddenly Richard started crying. She let out an annoyed growl.

"I take care of him," the older wizard said kissing her cheek. "it's time to introduce him to the family trade."

"I won't let you off that easily. I'll hold you to it," Hermione said.

"I was rather hoping you would," he replied smiling.

Shushing his baby he went to his office. He framed both Rose's and Hermione's drawing. The similarity was striking. Luckily his daughter was a clumsy three-year-old so there was still hope for her. The former Death Eater fed his baby-boy a bottle over his accounting. Richard looked at his father with his big brown eyes feeding on every word his father said.


	42. Joining a Community

**Joining a Community**

Lucius suggested to invite his in-laws, Chris, Ms. Goyle and the boy to the Burrow, leaving the unpopular wife out, to follow the Statue of Secrecy, of course. Hermione followed his advice. Telling people that there was a witch or wizard in their family was never an easy task but making magical friends would make their start in a new world much easier.

At the first talk Hermione had with Ms. Goyle, she had a hard time believing the young witch, therefore, exposing them to a little more magic seemed a good way to ease their skepticism. The young boy just thought it was cool to be a wizard.

Chris met up with his friends and together they picked up Ms. Goyle and their son before meeting up with Arthur and George who apparated the muggle to their home. Ms. Goyle had a hard time not throwing up. Her ex failed in that endeavor.

"You'll never really get used to it," Mr. Granger said with a hand on his friend's shoulder.

The two of them grow up in the same village and were both catholic. While religion didn't play an important role in their lives, historically people have always preferred to marry within their own confession. It was therefore not too much of a surprise that both of them had the potential to father magical children if they met the right partner.

Hermione and Pansy arrived shortly after one another with their children. Chris had heard Rose refer to her mom as a witch before but the girl was only three and he didn't take her seriously.

"So, your husband is a wizard? Is that why I've never met him?" he asked his goddaughter.

"No, that is because no one can stand him," Hermione replied sharply.

She didn't feel like talking to the man. While a part of her thought that his wife got what she deserved, after all, had she shown a little more interest in her husband's life she would have either found out much sooner or he would have never cheated on her at all. But Hermione was also disgusted by the fact that Chris, her father's best friend who was always part of the family could do something like that.

Ms. Goyle sat down with Hermione, Ginny, and Pansy. While Arthur showed the Grangers and Chris in. George decided to teach the boy how to ride a broom. This wasn't exactly something Hermione considered crucial but the one-eared Weasley told her that the kid had to be able to make friends and therefore they should take him to a Quidditch-match eventually.

"Why did my parents give me away?" Ms. Goyle asked.

"Because you can't do magic."

"For once it's considered shameful to have a squib in the family, it lowers the chances for the 'healthy' children of getting a good husband or wife but also they wouldn't have known what to do with you," Hermione explained.

"What happened to my biological family?"

"Most of them either died in the wars or in prison."

"Why?" the lady asked sounding like a child.

"They supported he-who-must-not-be-named."

After a while, Hermione invited the woman and her son to Richard's first-right ceremony. The squib sounded interested but Pansy told her to think it through before making promises. Mr. Malfoy wasn't exactly popular.

"Well, people like my parents hate him because he was a follower of the biggest tyrant since Grindlewald and because of all the crimes he was never proven guilty of," Ginny explained.

"People like my mom hate him because he wedded a mudblood and got children out of her, no offense," Pansy added.

"None taken," Hermione said.

"My mom actually offered me him as a concubine. So in case, Draco hadn't made it he would have still had a spare. She didn't think I would pass my OLWs."

"Why have I never heard about this before?" Hermione shrieked.

"It's not important. He declined, I got pregnant by George and when he divorced Narcissa, mother was furious. She still thought I could have gotten myself a husband like this even though he was very clear in expressing his lack of interest in me."

They chatted about purebloods and Narcissa. Hermione had to admit that even though the older witch still looked down on her because of her heritage she still liked her better than Percy.

"I don't know why she married my brother."

"I've heard from my mom who has it from Mrs. Zabini, and she has to know it if you get what I mean, that Narcissa enjoys dominating her partners," Pansy said.

"That sounds hot. You think they're still seeing each other? Mrs. Zabini and Narcissa, I mean. I would give it a try or would that incest?"

"Lady Black is your son's grandmother and your brother's wife but you're not actually related so you should be fine."

"Wasn't your grandma a Black before being disowned for marrying a Weasley?"

"I'm just talking about sex. I don't want her child," Ginny defended herself.

"Are you always gossiping so much?" Ms. Goyle asked.

"You really aren't a pureblood. We're only holding back for Hermione's sake. She's a bit of a spoilsport. You should hear my mother's friends," Pansy answered.

"Or my greataunt Muriel," Ginny added.


	43. Cermony at the Conservatory

**Ceremony at the Conservatory**

Harry decided to attend the ritual with Draco. Even if he wasn't thought to be gay he still wouldn't have been able to get a date. At least not one he could bring to a family-celebration-thing where his entire extended family would be present. He was Harry Potter after all and this was the sole reason why someone wanted to be seen with him.

The young war-hero was nervous. He had an essential role to play in this ritual. Not only did he lack experience since this was the first time he partook in an ancient wizard-rite but also it was the first time he didn't have Ron by his side. While his best friend was attending the ceremony, he was there as a guest with Susan and not as part of the family. Draco told Harry what to do one last time.

The first guests arrived. Dudley greeted him smiling. Cho had no intention of attending an event held at Malfoy Manor but it was the first time she was allowed to bring her now fiance along and Dudley was looking forward to seeing Harry again and finally getting to know her world.

Charlie returned from Romania to pay the newborn his respects and to see his family again. Less than half a decade ago being invited to the Malfoy Manor was unthinkable for the entire Weasley-clan now they were family of sorts. Ron announced proudly that he was going to be a dad to his brother introducing him to Susan.

Hermione was in a reading room, showing her parents her baby-boy while Lucius greeted his ex-wife. "You do realize there are children present, I do hope you can tolerate this obstacle."

"This is what I love about you," Narcissa said kissing his cheeks, "you never fail to remind me why I divorced you."

The dark wizard kissed her hand, "The pleasure is mine. By the way, your in-laws are already present. Have fun."

Percy looked at the floor and followed his wife silently to the table were Andromeda and Mrs. Zabini were seated. The three purebloods must have been Britain's most beautiful witches only Percy didn't seem to fit in.

Draco introduced Ms. Goyle to Theo since she hoped to get in contact with her last living relatives and he was married to Gregory's wife's younger sister Astoria. Bill, Charlie, and George watched the children play Quidditch in front of the vast conservatory. Since it was summer and likely to have a thunderstorm in the afternoon the tables were inside the impressive building made out of glass with an iron-frame.

Ginny and Pansy used the occasion to check out wizards while Molly and Arthur tried not to look not completely misplaced. Harry stood next to a newly planted walnut-tree trying not to gag knowing that Hermione's placenta was buried beneath it.

Richard was lying on a red blanket. Mr. Malfoy was the first to lift the baby up. He raised him above his head and mumbled an ancient spell signifying his accepting his son into the family before laying him back on the ground. Draco repeated the action.

Now it was Harry's turn. While he had actually practiced he was still afraid of screwing up. Even after abandoning her, Hermione had, reluctantly but still, taken him back as a friend and welcomed him into her family. Now it was his turn of formally accepting his godson. All eyes were on him.

The young war-hero still hated being the center of attention but wishing didn't make the crowd and cameras disappear. He lifted Richard up and luckily didn't drop him. He even remembered the words he was supposed to say and a sigh of relief left his lips as he felt the magic binding him to the boy. He handed Hermione her son and she smiled at him.

Once the ceremony was over they sat down and enjoyed the feast. Sitting down next to Draco and Rose, Harry watched his best friend dig into his food at the table in the opposite corner of the green-house. He wished he could be sitting with the Weasleys and Susan. Even though he wasn't afraid of the old Malfoy he didn't feel very comfortable in the Death Eater's presence either.

It was hot and the air was thick. A giant tortoise scratched the glass-door with his leg trying to get back in. the bushy-haired witch had wanted to have a kneazle or a cat but her older husband wasn't fond of them. He probably wasn't into getting hair on his fine dress-robes and the couple adopted reptiles instead.

The conservatory was not only home to orange-trees and tortoises but also rhinoceros iguanas. They were mostly vegetarian and only occasionally subsidized their diet with insects. Feeding them with bare hands was still not advisable. Unsurprisingly Hermione knew all of her monsters by name. To her defense her 'cuties' were less ugly then Crookshanks had been.

All in all, it was a great party, and having spent so much time with Blaise and Draco over the last weeks, Harry enjoyed their proximity. Luckily there wasn't an instance and Ron didn't even scream when one of the iguanas bit his finger. Probably because he was dating a healer who whispered the right things into his ear.

Dr. and Dr. Granger handed their daughter an envelope. Inside were four tickets for swan lake.

Hermione hugged her mom. "Thank you, it's perfect. Draco is looking forward to babysitting."

"Am I?"

"You are."


	44. Epilog

**Thank you all for reading this I hope you enjoyed it. And Happy Holidays.**

**Special thanks to SereniteRose for making me continue this story and supporting me throughout the process.**

* * *

**Epilog**

"No, I do not want to press charges," Mr. Malfoy said to the young police officer sitting next to him.

"But sir, your nose, it's broken," she insisted.

"Like I said before, it is not an issue."

The evening did not go as planned. His wife was angry at him and left the opera house early with her mother, leaving the older wizard behind. Sitting at a police station in muggle London was not something he always wanted to do. His nose was bleeding and he could not heal it as long as muggles were present. Also, he wanted to know which fate the white swan awaited.

"You're lucky Mr. Malfoy doesn't want to press charges for your assault," an experienced officer said to the dentist.

"He grabbed my daughter's butt," Dr. Granger defended himself.

The two men stared at each other until the young officer interrupted their silence. Peaking through the opened door of the interrogation-room she told them that Mr. Malfoy was asking when Dr. Granger was done answering questions so they could leave.

"The man broke his nose! Why would they want to leave together? I don't think this would be wise," the officer in charge insisted.

Eventually, Lucius managed to leave with his father-in-law knowing the two of them would be the talk of the week. Covering his nose with a tissue he started to look for a place where he could fix his nose discreetly. Dr. Granger showed him the tiny bathroom of his favorite pub.

Once he looked presentable again he joined the dentist at the bar. The wizard ordered two double-whiskeys and more of whatever the other man was having. He knew Hermione was furious and had no desire to return home. The muggle had a similar problem. His wife had been really looking forward to this evening and he kind of ruined it. They sat next to each other having one drink after another.

"Are you afraid of my little daughter?" the dentist mocked the dark wizard.

"You raised her, you should know how terrifying she can be. My wife knows a few nasty curses and I would hate to find myself at the receiving end."

"She got that from her mother, the terrifying part at least. Hermione hasn't changed that much then."

They continued to drink and exchanged stories about their families and Hermione in particular until the pub closed and they crawled home hoping their wives wouldn't be furious anymore.


End file.
